Voices of Death
by scottiegal2012
Summary: Tommy Donnelly and the brothers are facing a life after killing Dokey Farrell. What will become of Ma? Who runs the neighborhood? What about nicky Cottero? Rated M for violence and language this is afterall a crime scene .
1. Chapter 1

Story: Voices of Death  
Summary: Cryptic title, but I'm bad with titles. The Donnelly brothers face life after killing Dokey Farrell. Will Ma live? What about Sal Minetta? He's gone and Nicky Cuttero is left to run the Italians.  
Rating: Oi M…. Lots of Violence in Hell's Kitchen, and of course mobsters throw out some rough language.  
Pairings: Tommy/Jenny hints and reminiscing. Jimmy/Joanie.  
Disclaimer: I LOVED the Black Donnellys, even own the DVD set, but I do not own the characters. The story line is all mine, grasped off of hints dropped in post-series interviews by Kate Mulgrew (Helen) and Jonathan Tucker (Tommy). NBC owned it, Haggis and Moresco created it. I just live in it.

* * *

**...the world will see that they won't have a days luck  
****and will disappear like the froth of the river... **_Ancient Irish Curse_

_**Chapter One**_

_Tick. Tick. Tick._

Five minutes late.

_Tick. Tick. Tick._

Six Minutes.

He was getting restless now. The wind whipped down the city streets, pulling his jacket against his flesh and sending an unwanted shiver through him. It was unusually cold for October – It felt like December and the threat of bad weather grew imminent as the gray clouds gathered above him, darkening with every moment.

_Tick. Tick. Tick._

Finally. Tommy Donnelly let out a slow breath as he watched Frankie Stein, a detective in the local precinct, cross the street and walk into the looming shadow of the massive General Hospital. "Anything on Joey?"

Frankie shook his head. "They arrested him outside the Firecracker after 1 last night, but no word on what they're doing with him.

"Joey Ice Cream would rat us all out in a second." Tommy ran his hand through his matted down hair. It had been a very long night and knowing Joey had been picked up felt like a kick to the… what is it the Italians say…? Yeah, gonads. That reminded him… Nicky Cottero was probably looking for him. Tommy had in no uncertain terms threatened the man's mother, but that might not be enough to stop an Italian prick like him. Tommy ventured further into the all-but-confession he was making to the Detective in front of him. "If he says too much, they'll pick us up too."

Frankie nodded. He always liked Tommy, a good kid with a head on his shoulders. If he wasn't so bent on defending and protecting his derelict brothers he could go places. "How's your mother?"

Tommy glanced at his hands, her blood still under his fingernails, dried. He'd never fought for something so hard in his life, but ma, she was important. If he had known the plan… Dokey's plan… he would have taken that bullet for her. "They haven't come out with any information. She's still in surgery."

"Take care of her, Tommy, your father would want that." Frankie touched Tommy's shoulder lightly, and than without another word, turned and walked back toward where he had come from. Back to the station no doubt, to continue sifting through the mess the Irish had left him.

Tommy felt a familiar sting behind his eyes. He'd been crying all night – they all had been. Their mom was tough, but hope was fading. They'd never seen her this helpless, even after dad had died…

He turned and walked through the automatic glass doors and into the elevator. He'd been in the ICU too many times this year.

* * *

Jimmy paced in the waiting room, Joanie watching him… back and forth.

"You're making me nervous." It was mostly true. They both needed desperately to get high, but neither wanted to leave until they were sure Helen would live.

"I need it, Joanie!" He whispered fiercely, even as he spoke, Kevin was up and by his side.

"Coffee might help. Let's go get coffee. Seannie can wait here and call us if the doctor comes out."

Jimmy nodded knowing that moving and caffeine would help take his mind off the desire to crawl out of his skin.

They walked out, passing Tommy as they went.

"Where are they going?" Tommy had a frustrated look in his eye.

Sean said nothing. He didn't even look up. A response would take too much effort and it didn't really matter. Nothing mattered.

Tommy's frustration vanished as he realized teas were dripping steadily down his little brother's cheek. "Seannie?" He knelt down so he could look straight in the younger man's eyes. "She'll be ok. She knows we need her."

Sean shook his head. "No, Tommy, I don't think she will be. Dokey took dad, now he's taking Ma too."

Tommy stared at his brother. He seemed confident, almost as though she were already gone.

Suddenly Sean jumped to his feet and Tommy turned to see why. Two doctors, clothed in dress pants, gray button-down shirts and black ties approached, standard white lab coat draped over top. He stood up and squeezed Sean's shoulder, as much for his own comfort as Sean's. He had no idea what to expect from the expressionless men who approached and the knot in his stomach was tightening like a noose.

"Mr. Donnelly?"

Tommy was certain he'd seen these doctors before; probably after the brutal beating Cottero and his partner Vinnie Culiari had given to Sean. "Is she… is she okay?" He stammered, not sure if he wanted an answer.

"She took quite a blow," The first doctor began speaking, "The bullet entered her heart above the left ventricle and lodged in…"

His voice seemed to fade as Tommy struggled to focus. He didn't want this… he didn't want details, information… he just wanted to know if his mother was going to live. He felt a ringing in his ears and the knot in his stomach made him nauseas. _Just tell me._ He wanted an answer now. He felt the room begin to spin and he saw the fluorescent lights move from the ceiling to the wall in front of him as he collapsed to the cold hospital tiles.

* * *

"Tommy?"

His eyes opened slowly. One of the doctors and Sean were leaning over him.

"What happened?" He managed as the ceiling came into focus beyond the faces staring down at him.

"You passed out son." The doctor was older, and had a thick Boston accent, a stark contrast to the obvious New York one he heard every day.

"Where's the other guy? He was telling how Ma was." Tommy looked around frantically.

"He got a call from the ER. Your mother is stable, but not awake. You can go in if you promise to keep your feet."

Tommy agreed, trying to stand needing the other two to help.

"Both of us." Sean's statement was flat. He wasn't staying in the waiting room and those three words expressed his sentiments clearly.

"Very well." The doctor looked reluctant, but nodded to allow it. The reluctance scared Tommy. _How bad is she?_

They walked down the hallway past empty rooms with glass walls and both froze as they saw the machines attached to their mother. She had needed multiple transfusions and those monitors beeped loudly, an uncomfortable reminder that she was nearly dead.

The nurses had cleaned her up a bit, no traces if blood left on her and her hair was down and pulled to her side. Tommy couldn't remember the last time it wasn't pulled back into a clip or up in a bun. Maybe not even since he was a kid.

"She looks hurt, Tommy." Sean's whisper was barely audible as he shuffled toward the bed, his independent confidence all but gone. He reached toward the bed, fingers outstretched and he touched his hair. Slowly he pulled small bits out from under her and arranged it carefully over her shoulder, smoothing it down. "There's cuts on her neck and shoulders." He touched the soft flesh and ran his fingers along her neck, wincing as though the wounds were his own.

"She was laying on the glass from the shattered window." Tommy was still standing at the door. He hadn't moved and his eyes were fixed on her limp body.

"Yeah." Sean finished smoothing her hair as he began to cry again. He wiped his eyes hard and looked up at Tommy. "She's so sick."

"It's my fault."

Both turned to see Jimmy's guilt-stricken, tear-stained face in the doorway.

"If I had just come with you we would have been out of state before Dokey knew what the fuck we were doing!"

Joanie wrapped her fingers around his wrist. "Ssh… It's not your fault, you couldn't have known he'd do this."

Her words were little comfort to Jimmy as he wrenched his arm away from her. "I should have known! Tommy said he killed dad!" He limped to the bed and grabbed Helen's hand in both of his. "I'm so sorry, Ma." He breathed into her ear, his face inches from hers.

Kevin was the only one who'd composed himself. He felt he owed Ma that much, to be strong for her. "We all had a part in the events that led to last night."

"Don't try and be the fucking voice of reason, Kevin!"

"Jimmy!" Sean was glaring, a face he didn't assume easily. "I'm pretty sure it does Ma no good for you to be cursing and causing problems!"

Every eye was on Sean. He was usually easy going, but he was on edge. He watched a man who claimed to be a good Catholic shoot his mother with no provocation or reason whatsoever. She didn't do anything to him, it should have been one of them lying there dying.

"Seannie..?" Jimmy was hoarse.

Sean managed a sharp breath as he looked at Jimmy. "I'm sorry, Jimmy, but it shouldn't be her."

Jimmy nodded and slumped into the chair behind him, Joanie easing onto his lap, eyes fixed on Helen.

Tommy finally moved from the door to lean against the bed, his hand resting on his mother's leg.

Kevin joined Sean on the other side and they all remained quiet for a while. The monitors beeping was the only sound breaking through.

* * *

Joanie sat in the ICU room alone. They had decided to take shifts, each a turn sitting with Helen. She was the second, relieving Kevin so he can go home and rest. Secretly she hoped Helen wouldn't wake up, they'd only met once and not under circumstances that would reveal Helens feelings toward the scrawny little druggie dating her eldest son. She no sooner decided that it wouldn't happen and Helen's eyes opened. No other movement, just the eyes.

"Mrs. Donnelly?" Joanie wasn't sure if she should leave and call one of the brothers or sit and wait. She slid to the edge of her chair and into Helen's field of vision. "Mrs. Donnelly? It's Joanie, Jimmy's girlfriend?" She wasn't sure why it came out as a question, but Helen didn't respond. Instead her eyes drifted shut again. Maybe Joanie was a little more tired than she thought.

* * *

"Where are the bodies?" Joey repeated the question out loud to himself as he sat in the dark cell. The keep asking and the more 'bodies' they discuss, the deeper the conversation gets. He didn't want to rat on the Donnelly Brothers, but the cops _knew_ he was clued in on it. He couldn't feign unawares as was his initial plan. _Yeah the plan._ "My phone call!" He shoved his arm through the cold steel bars to draw the guard's attention.

"You want your call, Joey?" The guard's tone was mocking.

"Yeah, I know my rights."

Rolling his eyes, the guard slammed his nightstick against the lock making Joey jump back. Than he unlocked it and slapped cuffs on Joey's wrists. "Five minutes." He shoved Joey toward the wall of phones at the far end of the cell block and stepped just out of ear shot. He didn't have any interest in Joey's phone call.

Joey punched in the familiar 9 digit number and the answering machine. "You've reached the Donnellys, leave a name and number." It was short and carried Mrs. Donnelly's curt attitude straight to his heart. He loved that woman like a mother, like the mother he never had. He didn't even know if she was alive. "Hey guys, it's Joey. Ya there? Pick up?" He paused and glanced sideways at the restless guard. "Pick up-pick up-pick up-pick up!"

"Okay! Gimme a second." Kevin sounded tired on the other end. "Geez Joey, I just walked in. What do you want?"

"I have five. They booked my last night outside the bar walking back from the hospital. Is your Ma alive?" It was out before he could stop it and he grimaced at the way it sounded. Kevin's silence didn't help for an answer either.

"Kevin, I - I didn't mean it like that."

Kevin took a slow breath, the emotion finally cracking his voice. "It's alright, Joey. She's the same as last night. They stopped the bleeding, but we have no answers. She's not any better. You good? No way we can make bail."

Joey hadn't exactly expected them to bail him out, he just wanted to know about their Ma, she did practically raise him when his Grandmother wasn't able to be the mother. He had forced his way into the Donnelly's home, but Helen always looked at him with the same loving, sometimes odd look she gave her own sons. "No, I'm alright. Tell ya Ma I love her." Joey wasn't usually sentimental, but he was tearing up thinking about her lying in that hospital bed.

"Yeah, Joey, I will. Take care of yourself."

"You too."

_Click._ Joey shuffled back down the cell block, leaving the guard to catch up. _Not any better. Not any better._ They were gonna haunt him - keep him up at night, those three words. _Not any better. _

* * *

_Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep._

Steady… like a ticking clock. And after maybe twenty of them pressure. It tightened quickly and than loosened with that same rhythm.

_Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep._

Punctuated. A slight, barely registered pause between each, but ever steady.

Light. It burned. _Searing pain._

"Mrs. Donnelly?" The voice. She heard it many beeps ago than it had been gone. "Mrs. Donnelly? It's Joanie, Jimmy's girlfriend?"

_Joanie._ Yes. She was innocent. Caught up in a world not meant for such a sweet girl. _Not like Seannie's_ Kim.

Darkness. Relief.

The voice… _Joanie_… it sighed and than there was movement before silence again.

_Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep._

"How is she?" This voice was different. _Very_ familiar. "I should have been with them."

"Yeah." _Joanie._ "Tommy wants you bad."

Both voices giggled. The first said something, but what? It sounded nice.

"Hi, Mrs. Donnelly." There was a happiness in it, but only slight, maybe melancholy? "I bet you're cold… always cold." The voice laughed again. "I remember Mr. Donnelly hated when you kept the house hot. Between you and me, he was wrong, it was always comfortable." Hands pulled the blanket up and tucked it close around. _Safe._

"_Jenny…."_ The words took an eternity to form and to utter both syllables… it sounded and felt like ten and it hurt. It would not be tried again, but it felt good to make her hear it.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

Jenny's heart leapt as Helen managed to say her name. She reached down and squeezed her hand. "I'm here. I'm right here."

Helen's mouth moved slightly, but not to speak, more of an acknowledgement as she moved her hand in response to Jenny's presence. Someone familiar, warm and comfortable to sit with her.

Jenny moved her thumb over the keys on her cell phone, glancing down only to verify that it was the Donnelly's home number on the screen. Holding the phone to her ear she waited patiently.

"Hey."

"Kevin? Kevin, your mom said my name… and squeezed my hand!" Jenny tried hard not to shout into the phone as her excitement bubbled up.

"Wait… Jenny? How'd you know Ma was-"

"Never mind that. Get to the hospital, Kevin." Jenny hung up and smiled. "Your sons will be here soon."

Kevin called his brothers while running the seven and a half blocks to the hospital. He got to the lobby the same time as Jimmy, who was supposed to be switching with Joanie in just a bit.

The elevator was old and slow, giving Kevin time to ask his brother how his night was. "Did you get high?"

Jimmy's laugh was more of a cackle and in itself an answer. "Do I look good?"

Kevin decided that the best thing to do would be to drop it as the doors opened into the ICU. They walked toward the room Helen was in and could hear Jenny talking to her as they got closer.

Helen's eyes were open, but she made no attempt to move or speak as Jimmy and Kevin walked in.

"She's in a ton of pain despite the high doses of meds they have her on." Jenny looked concerned as she hugged both boys.

Kevin sat on the edge of the bed and smiled at Helen. "Hey, Mom, you look a lot better than you did six hours ago."

Helen managed to move her mouth in a slight smile, but nothing more.

Jimmy leaned in and kissed the side of her head. "Hey, Ma, all's good huh?"

Kevin rolled his eyes and hoped the medication was high enough to let her forget her son came in stoned.

Tommy and Sean sat in the van, neither speaking. Sean fiddled with the knobs, the lights, the cigarette lighter, the radio, anything to keep him from looking into the back. Finally he let his head fall against the back of the seat and stared up at the mirror. It reflected the mess they'd put themselves, and ultimately their mother through. "Lot's of blood, Tommy."

"Yeah."

"She almost died."

Tommy nodded. He wasn't sure why they decided to go sit in the van, but wandering aimlessly through New York streets after midnight wasn't exactly ideal. So, here they were. "Where's your phone? I'm going to call Kev and see if we have any news."

Sean dug his phone out and held up a finger. "Missed call… it was Kevin." He dialed in the number, but was disappointed to hear the voicemail pick up immediately.

Tommy stared at Sean a moment. "Maybe he's at the hospital?"

Sean's face betrayed his panic as he gunned the engine and floored the accelerator, heading for the nearest back road that would take them to the hospital.

Tommy and Sean ran the whole way from the lower garage lot to the ICU room where their mother was lying.

"Is everything ok?" Tommy gasped as they pushed into the room.

Helen managed a better smile, still lying flat as a nurse checked her vitals.

"She's in a lot of pain." Jenny seemed unable to focus on anything else. "But, she is awake and aware of everything." He final words brought pure relief to Tommy's face and she loved to see it. It'd been a long time since she was able to make him happy.

"Thank God." Sean mumbled as her ran his fingers over his chest in the familiar Catholic way. He didn't pray often and preferred to save up his points with the Almighty for important circumstances. This had been one of those times.

The nurse turned to Kevin who was still perched on the end of the bed. "I want her head elevated above her chest so we can be sure it's pumping properly with the damage. You need to steady her as I raise the bed, she might get very dizzy, and maybe sick."

Kevin nodded as he rested his hands against his mother's shoulders and the bed rose slowly up. He watched her eyes shut tightly and her teeth clenched hard, betraying her agony.

Finally she spoke. "Stop!" It was louder than anyone expected her capable of, but the pain was becoming unbearable and the room was spinning even through closed eyelids.

The nurse pulled her finger from the control instantly. "Okay, Mrs. Donnelly. Take a few deep breaths, we don't want you getting sick all over your son."

Kevin grinned as he watched his mother open her eyes again.

"Well, at least you can see them now." The nurse spoke while moving some of the tubes and wires to under the pillow so they wouldn't get caught up. "If the pain gets worse, lay her down and call for me."

"Thank you ma'am." Kevin nodded to the nurse before leaning forward and kissing his mom on the forehead.

Tommy and Sean grabbed the chairs that were just outside of the room and parked themselves on her right opposite Jimmy and Jenny.

"You look good, Ma, the color's back in your face." He reached across and squeezed her hand gently. "Real good."

She let her head fall slowly to the side so she could see her second eldest better. "Tommy… did you get him?"

"Yeah, Ma, he's done." It was the first time any open exchange had occurred regarding their misdeeds and it surprised him that she asked.

"Good."

Her sons exchanged confused glances.

She cleared her throat and paused a moment. "I've wanted him dead for a very long time." She allowed a slight smirk as she began to drift back to sleep.

"Joey's bail was set at $200,000." Frankie sipped at his coffee as he let his words sink in.

Tommy had barely sat down on the stool next to Frankie when he hit him with that. "Isn't there a law about reasonable bail?"

Frankie shrugged. "Tell me, Tommy, what's reasonable on a murder beat?"

Tommy couldn't argue, whenever he had set out to pay bail on Jimmy they had been petty theft, car jackings with no damage on the vehicle, but never murder. "Hey, Jenny." Tommy took the coffee mug Jenny set down for him. "What time did you leave the hospital?"

"It was after four... Maybe near five." She shrugged and wiped her fingers on her apron. "If you need me for anything, to sit with her, or bring some food, don't hesitate to ask."

"Thanks." His eyes shone at her kindness. If only he'd been able to capture her heart from the beginning. Now all he had was her acknowledgement of his existence, nothing more.

Frankie leaned forward toward Jenny. "You keep being nice to him, he's not gonna quit."

Jenny smiled softly. "Yeah, well at least he's nothing beyond just annoying. Besides it's for his Ma."

"You're right… he could be ugly too."

Tommy rolled his eyes. "Can I get a sandwich for Seannie? He'll be there all day."

"Yeah, I'm make him a BLT. Take a muffin for him too."

Tommy smiled while he waited for her to wrap and bag up Sean's lunch. He set a ten on the counter and she shook her head slowly.

"No, Tommy… you guys are taking care of your mom, it's the least I can do."

He dropped his head slightly and fought a tear. "It means a lot, Jenny." He picked the ten back up and grabbed the bag, leaving to walk back to the hospital.

Sean was sitting on the bed, facing Helen who was trying to get down whatever sludge was on the tray in front of her.

"Look good, Ma."

Both looked up as Tommy came in.

Helen slid her glasses off her face and let them hang off the string around her neck. "I still feel weak."

"Keep eating and you'll feel better in no time."

Helen fixed her gaze on him a while longer. She couldn't read him since showing him those damn pictures. The red eyes, the tears on his cheeks, it made her regret it right away. She couldn't take it back, and now she didn't know what was going on in him.

"Ma, you gotta eat." Sean interrupted her thoughts as he slid the plate closer to her.

"I'm done, Seannie, thank you."

Sean sighed and pushed the tray cart off to the side as Helen eased herself back against the nearly upright pillows.

Tommy set the bag down next to Sean on the bed. "Jenny made you lunch."

Sean grinned. "Oh yeah?"

"That girl talking to you yet?" Helen smirked at Tommy and Sean stiffled a chuckle.

"You say that like you haven't known her for her entire life… and not really, no."

Helen shook her head and eyed him. "The tension between you two is unGodly and it's killing a long standing friendship."

Tommy didn't respond, but instead stared at the floor. How could he tell his mother he had a one-night stand with a married woman and than that woman shattered his heart. He simply couldn't and so he remained silent.

"Seannie, can you get me some tea?" Helen glanced at Sean.

Sean nodded and left knowing she needed to be alone with Tommy. The door swung shut slowly as Sean let it go.

"What's going on with you, Tommy? And I mean more than just Jenny." Despite the weakness she was feeling and the queasiness that was hitting her after the first semi-solid meal in days, she came across as the confident mother she always was.

"Just… a lot has happened, Ma."

"A lot has happened to all of us, and your bothers and I… we look better than you do." Her voice dropped to just above a whisper. "Come over here and talk to me."

He shoved his hands in his pockets and pushed the chair close to her bed using his foot. Than he slumped down in it, still silent.

"Tommy?" She reached out and he pulled his hand out to meet hers. "I love you, you know. Don't forget that… okay? Never forget that."

"I know." He looked up at her unsure of how to express his feelings about the life he lived that nearly killed her. "I've got to work this out on my own."

"Okay, Tommy." There was a trust in her voice that her heart didn't feel. _Why did I show them to him?_ She was certain it was the root of this present turmoil.

They were both startled to hear a knock at the door. Sean was trying hard not to laugh as he pushed the door open with his foot, two cups in his hands. "I didn't want to scare you, I just wanted you to know I was back."

"Yeah, I can see." Tommy grinned as Sean handed him a steaming Styrofoam cup.

"Thank you, Seannie." Helen smiled as he propped up her pillows more and gave her the hot tea in his other hand.

"No problem." he walked to the foot of the bed and leaned with both elbows against the plastic bar across the bottom.

"Have you seen Nadine?" Tommy lifted his eyebrow, his lopsided smirk revealing his still boyish charm. He sobered his expression slightly. "I'm sorry about that last encounter, I must have traumatized her."

Helen closed her eyes and let herself listen to her sons toss insults and sarcasm back and forth, mostly about the women in their lives. When their banter had quieted, she took a stab at the 'girlfriend question,' eyes still closed. "What is it about her, Seannie?"

He was surprised she asked. "Everything, Ma. I mean _literally_ from her looks, to her personality, the whole package."

"What about her looks?"

"Honest, giving, she'd do anything for ya, respectful, and she's got morals."

Tommy took this as an opportunity for more sarcasm. "Imagine that, Ma! Seannie dating a girl with _morals_."

Helen opened one eye to look at Tommy before shutting it again. "Yes, our little playboy is growing up."

"Not even funny guys!" Sean protested louder than he intended, earning him a disapproving look from a passing nurse. "What was that for?"

Tommy shrugged. "We are still in the ICU, other patients are probably in pretty bad shape." Tommy stood and let his fingers trail across the blanket on the bed toward the pillow. "I have to get to the bar, Jimmy needs help with some stuff. "Rest, Ma."

"I'll try." She smiled as he kissed the top of her head and walked out.

"Jenny makes good food… you want some?" Sean held half the sandwich up.

Helen groaned and shook her head. "The sludge I just ate is more than my stomach can handle, Seannie."

He settled into the chair next to her and opened up his GED book, trying to make sense of it as he ate.

Helen let her eyes drift shut, falling asleep still clutching the cup of tea.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

The sun had reached a little more than halfway in it's daily trek by the time Tommy had showered, eaten and made his way to the Firecracker.

"Where you been, Tommy boy?" Jimmy's ever-present grin made Tommy feel at home. They'd had their share of problems, but after seeing their mother get shot it all seemed so petty.

"Seeing Ma. I brought Seannie some lunch from Riley's."

"Oh yeah?" Jimmy pulled one of the tap levers and filled an icy mug for his brother. "I'm there tomorrow morning. She look good?"

Tommy pulled his jacket off and dropped it over the stool before perching on it, his elbows leaning on the bar. "Better." He took a long slow drink and than wiped the cold foam from his lips. "Thanks, Jimmy, I needed this."

"A true Irishman." Jimmy held his mug up to his brother before chugging it and laughing. He slammed it down and wandered over to the pool table where Kevin was silently racking up the balls. "Give me a bit and we'll get that shit downstairs moved."

"Yeah, okay." Tommy watched his brothers as he slowly downed the rest of his beer.

"Hey, uh…" Kevin set the cue ball perfectly squared with the center and right corner pockets. "Is Ma moving more?" He pulled the cue stick back and angled it up just enough before striking the white ball hard sending it careening toward the triangle of other balls, breaking it perfectly and scoring two pocketed balls.

Tommy picked up his mug and moved to the end of the bar, parking himself on the stool closest to the pool table. "Yeah, she was sitting up almost all the way and they had her eating something. She was talking more too, but she's pale as ever and still looks real weak."

"Better than nothing." Jimmy laughed out loud interrupting the serious conversation as he observed Kevin move from his perfect shot into a pure shot of the cue ball into a side pocket. "Beautiful, Kev!"

"Shut up, Jimmy." Kevin sat at the bar next to Tommy while they watched Jimmy study the table.

"Good thing you don't put stakes on the pool games you play." Tommy mumbled to Kevin.

Kevin gave his older brother a marked look of annoyance, but didn't give it a response.

Jimmy missed his shot and cursed under his breath. "You're up."

Tommy slapped Kevin on the back of his shoulder. "Go get em, Lucky!"

Both older brothers broke into uncontrollable laughter, but Kevin was not amused. He took up a stance, his right heel forcing the rest of his body against the table. He rested the cue stick gently on the knuckle of his middle finger he slid the stick forward with more force than the break, sending three solids one after another into the corner pocket. "Hah!" He shouted proudly.

Tommy shook his head. "I take that back. Let's bet on every other one of your shots."

Kevin took a bow. "Thank you, thank you."

A steady clapping broke through their laughter. "Very good, Kevin." Nicky Coterro and ever at his side, Vinnie Culiari, standing in the pale autumn sunlight streaming through the windows.

"What do you want?" Jimmy slammed his cue on the table and headed for the middle of the room where both Italian men were standing.

"Tommy." Nicky smirked. "Tommy still owes me money."

"Who the fuck do you think you are?" Jimmy countered sharply.

"The man you answer to now that Dokey Farrell and Alo Onatero are… no longer with us. It's me and you, Donnelly." Nicky was looking past Jimmy and straight into Tommy's eyes.

"I don't want any part of this, Nicky. You hear me? None." Tommy slammed his empty mug down and walked out, purposely bumping into Nicky as he went.

Once the bar door had swung shut again, Nicky let a smile spread across his face. "We'll see, Tommy Donnelly… we'll see."

* * *

Tommy paced in front of his apartment building, not knowing what to do about Nicky short of killing him. He was a hell of a tough Italian and if Alo really was gone, this would present a problem for him and the brothers. He ran silently through the list of everyone Nicky would hurt to get him to do what he wanted. The list was far too long and extended beyond just his brothers and Ma. He put his hand to his head as though the pressure would release his family from danger. He had two options; one, collect off of the scum left by Louie Downtown, or the second, Kill Nicky and Vinnie. Neither choice thrilled Tommy and he tried to think up other solutions. This needed some brainstorming. He walked back to the bar as quickly as he could without looking frightened. He pushed the door open and took note of who was in there. It was again just Jimmy and Kevin. "Anyone owe you money?"

"Nobody who's good for it." Kevin had just come up the stairs with a case to restock the cooler. Jimmy was sitting on the pool table trying to light a cigarette with a nearly empty lighter.

"Didn't think you were coming back." Jimmy mumbled as he finally got it lit. He tossed the lighter to Kevin who dropped it into the garbage can behind him.

"I'm sorry, Jimmy, but these Italians are presenting us a new problem and if you want to continue to use your meager existence, I suggest you help figure out what to do." Tommy was sweating now. It was cool in the bar, the old air conditioner working fine if it wasn't crowded, but Tommy was on edge and he was ready to fight Jimmy if necessary.

"Calm down, we're not gonna abandon you. Chill out, have another beer."

Tommy shook his head. "No, I need to be clean. I need this to go away."

"We're with you, Tommy." Kevin put the last few beers away and lifted his head from beneath the bar.

"Kevin, I need you to take my shift with Ma tonight."

"Okay." Kevin eyed Tommy before turning to Jimmy. "You ok here alone tonight?"

"Yeah, Kevin, Ma's more important. I can get Joanie to help tonight." He nodded behind him to the corner.

Tommy squinted and realized suddenly that Joanie was laying passed out on the bench of the booth. "Yeah, lot of help there."

Jimmy shrugged. "She's a light sleeper."

Tommy rubbed his eyes as though he were imagining both Joanie and Jimmy and he turned back to Kevin. "Sean's done at 6."

Kevin nodded. "Gives me enough time to wash up and grab some food."

With that Tommy left the bar and headed not home, but toward Riley's. He began banging on the door as soon as he got there. She had everything closed up tight. Not one light was on. He took a few steps back and lifted his head to the apartment windows above the diner storefront. "Jenny! Jenny, I need to talk to you!"

_Nothing._

He clenched his fists in frustration. _Where could she be?_ He unballed his fists and threw his hands in the air. He yelled a few more times before giving up and walking back home.

* * *

Sean found himself unable to stay awake as 6:00 approached. Tommy should be back any moment, but the long day of sitting in the ICU as his mom drifted in and out of sleep was enough to wear him thin. He didn't know how she'd done it while he was laying in that ICU bed. Every day she was there, overnight she'd stay put, fighting with the nurses, crying if she had to. She'd been there for every moment, until Huey's funeral service, but even than, Kevin told him that she'd been out of the hospital room for a grand total of 1 hour and 49 minutes. His head slid off his hand, startling himself as he jolted to a rigid upright position. "Oh man!" He mumbled as he rubbed his gritty eyes with his palms. He stood and paced from the foot of the bed to the door and back again.

"Hey, Seannie." Kevin walked in and dropped some magazines on the recently vacated chair. He pulled some bills out of his pocket. "Can you get me a soda before you leave?"

Sean took the crumpled dollars and cocked his head. "Where's Tommy?"

"I'm not sure. We're having problems with Nicky Coterro, so I think he'll try and handle that. Anyway, I'm staying with Ma tonight."

"Aren't I lucky." The deep voice wasn't more than a whisper this time around, but less hoarse than it had been.

Both boys turned to see their mother lift her head to stare at them.

"Could you possibly be any louder, Kevin?"

Sean laughed at Kevin before walking out in the general direction of the vending machines.

"Sorry, Ma." Kevin mumbled as he bent over to kiss her lightly. He sat on the front edge of the chair, careful not to completely destroy the magazines.

Helen grabbed the rail to help herself roll to her side to face Kevin. She propped her head up with her arm so she could see him over the obtrusive metal and plastic between them. "Who's Nicky Coterro?"

Kevin knew better than to lie to his Ma. "He worked for Sal Minetta, Tommy owes him bucco bucks."

"You mean Jimmy does." Helen corrected, not missing a beat.

Kevin grinned at his mother's naïve view of her second eldest child. " 'fraid not, Ma…. Tommy."

Helen's face twisted into a mixture of confusion and disbelief. "Why?" She asked in a measured tone.

Kevin sighed softly as he leaned closer, resting his chin and one arm on the bedrail she was still holding with her free hand. "There's a lot to it. More than you want to know."

Sean leaned in. "Here, they only had ginger ale."

Kevin made a face as he took it. "Thanks anyway, Seannie."

"Goodnight, Ma."

Helen held her arm up and Sean grinned like a five year old as he went to her and leaned into her surprisingly strong hug. "I love you, Mom."

"Love you too, Seannie. Get some sleep."

Sean nodded and left quietly.

Helen remained quiet for a moment before grasping the rail again and turning her attention back to Kevin. "Try me."

Kevin painfully recounted everything from the initial kidnapping of Louie Downtown to Sean's beating by Nicky and concluding with Nicky showing up at the apartment and than threatening Kevin and Tommy with Helen's life.

"The man at the house that day, the one looking for directions? He's the one who beat my Seannie?"

Kevin swallowed hard, rethinking his decision to tell her anything. Her heart was still weak from the bullet that tore through it and the surgery to fix it and now she was getting upset.

"You and Jimmy kidnapped this guy? Why? It started all of this."

He nodded, realizing suddenly how much of this pain and hardship he directly had caused.

"Kevin, you idiot." Helen rolled onto her back and pressed both of her hands against her eyes as though everything would go away when she opened them.

Kevin felt the sting of tears in his eyes. Ma had used harsh words with them since they were little, it was the tough city girl she had to be to survive, but this time it was truly his doing. This time he nearly cost his entire family their lives. "Mom, I don't know …. I don't know what to….To say. Ma….?" He wiped his eyes with the dirty sleeve and sniffed back hard.

She didn't move, instead taking slow breaths for a long, long time. After a while she started speaking. "I tried to get your father to stop all of this years ago. He - 'it's the business' he'd always say. 'It's how I feed you and the boys' he'd tell me. I got so sick of it, Kevin. I vowed you would never know about it, none of you and not a whisper of it. I failed to keep you out of it and now it's consuming all of us. You were born into a family hopelessly tied to this life of awful circumstance and chance. With Jimmy's criminal past your gambling, Tommy… who the hell knows what… and I know Sean's involved, somehow you three have gotten him into this shit too. I thought, God forgive me, once your father was gone it was over. Painful, but over. You would never know it." She moved her hand off of her eyes. "Regardless of how this started, if this Nicky so much as touches Tommy…." She trailed off, but stared at Kevin.

He wiped his eyes again. "I didn't know you were so aware of dad's … stuff."

Helen fished around for the remote that operated the bed and managed to move it upward a little bit. "I tried not to." She said finally. "I tried _desperately_ to stay out of it. Kate Farrell was… curious, confused and recently dating Huey, I had just found out I was pregnant with you. She would call me at all hours of the night wondering where the men were off to, why Huey hadn't called her and why he was so private. Though, I think she knew what they did, she was such the good girl, born to a rich family and raised in a private school, she had no idea, not really. She would ask questions about things I hadn't put much thought into. To answer her questions, I would have to ask your father; things like who was on Huey's payroll, who was on Sal Minetta's, what about Congressman Trevor, and who was paying who to keep the word on the street to a minimum. I got further and further until I found myself laying in bed at night, pretending to be asleep so I could hear who he was talking to and what the terms of each deal entailed." She played with pale skin that marked where her old and cheap wedding ring usually rested. She stared at her empty finger for a moment. Tommy had taken it home, so it would be safe while she was at the hospital. "Anyway, when Sean was born I was home more often and you three were out roaming the streets. I begged your father to keep me involved, and he did. I needed to know everything to keep you safe. That's how I found out about the-"

Kevin was on edge listening, tears nearly gone. "About what, Ma?"

Helen squeezed her eyes shut, already too far to stop now. "Dokey, Jack Trevor, your dad, Huey… they had a deal with the Italians. It was a property deal… _Longdale Properties._ He went to the diner to back out, I asked him to back out. I was scared, something wasn't right with it. I was right, except it was me being right that….I didn't know what playing it safe would cost me."

Kevin watched as his mother's beautiful blue eyes blinked back tears before they pushed through despite her best efforts and fell down her pale cheeks. Through her sobs she managed to catch her breath enough to apologize to Kevin. "What I said about you being an idiot, Kevin, never take it to heart. I love you and I always will no matter how many mistakes you make. We all make some terrible mistakes in our lives… my mistakes cost me the only man I've loved through my entire life."

Kevin was crying now too and he popped the rail out and slid next to her into the bed, careful not to pull any tubes or wires as he did. "I love you too, Mamma." He wrapped his arms around her as she leaned her forehead into his temple.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

Tommy stepped through the crowded bar with purpose. He need closure with the Italians or he needed to get Nicky out of the business entirely. He was banking on the one good deal they had between them. Leno. He had given the building inspector over to Nicky and Vinnie and they did what they wanted with him. Now Tommy had more information on Longdale Properties than even Leno had and he was willing to bet Nicky would work with that. He slid past a scantily dressed bar tender who winked at him suggestively.

"Here to see Nicky, Honey?"

"I know my way." Tommy stated flatly. He had no interest in distraction and he continued through an old oak door. Strippers were up front entertaining a small group of Nicky's people, Nicky and Vinnie were in their usual place near the back of the private dining room. They were smoking expensive looking cigars as they watched.

"Tommy Donnelly… you brought my money right?" Nicky held his hand out, knowing Tommy wasn't there to pay.

"We had a deal with Leno, Nicky… maybe we can work from that."

"Oh?" Nicky slowly brought his hand back before thrusting it in the air and snapping his fingers twice. At his call the scant bartender appeared. "Marie, get Tommy something to drink."

She looked Tommy up and down as though for the first time. "Beer, sexy?"

"Yeah, thanks." Tommy said, almost dismissively as he kept his gaze hard on Nicky.

"Sit, Tommy. What do you have for me?"

Tommy explained his knowledge of Longdale Properties and the monopoly it held in the Irish sector, a powerful collection of buildings and land. Every piece of information he and Kevin had beat out of Frannie Kenny was laid out for Nicky Cottero to taste.

"Can you get me the deeds?" He was doubtful of Tommy's abilities, but if he was of any use, Nicky would take advantage of it _before_ killing him.

Tommy nodded, his face betraying nothing. "Everything Alo couldn't get out of this deal, I can. I have connections." What Tommy wasn't saying was most of his connections were dead and the remaining men who knew anything were used to the axe as persuasion. Tommy may need to find one.

"And what do you want from me?" Nicky sounded suspicious.

"Those properties are worth a small fortune, Nicky." Tommy replied evenly. "I want three things. You stay away from my mom and brothers, stay away from the Firecracker… and Louie Downtown's earnings; I owe you nothing."

Nicky scratched at his chin. "Okay."

They shook hands and Tommy slipped out, ignoring the beer Marie had left him.

Vinnie eyed Nicky cautiously. "Is this temporary?"

"We will see, won't we?" Nicky took a swig of the vodka mixture in front of him before standing and walking out, beckoning his favorite of the strippers to follow him.

* * *

Jimmy stumbled out of the Firecracker, the bright sunlight stinging his eyes. With Joanie staying clean he hadn't been able to score an ounce in quite a bit and it was wearing him thin. The longer without a high he went, however, the clearer his dreams were becoming to him. He could marry this girl. _Joanie Donnelly_. It had a nice ring to it.

He grabbed a coffee in the hospital cafeteria instead of Riley's, still unable to face Jenny after attacking her gather. The cup was almost drained by the time the elevator reached the ICU. "Hey, Kev-"

Kevin was sitting in the bed beside Ma., head against hers and both arms wrapped around her, sound asleep.

He smiled at his little brother and pulled his jacket off. He laid it over them and tucked it under their chins before falling into the chair and dozing off himself.

* * *

Helen's eyes opened slowly to see a nurse checking vitals on the monitor above the head of the bed.

The nurse saw her wake up. "He shouldn't be there." She said, an edge to her voice as she eyed Kevin.

Helen felt an angry wave hit her. "What's it to you? Who's it hurting?" She countered sharply.

"It's policy. Wake him." She began to walk out. "Oh, and they're moving you in an hour to the fourth floor."

Helen shrugged off the nurse's icy comments as she nudged Kevin lightly. "Kev, honey, go home, get some rest."

Kevin rubbed his eyes and glanced over at a sleeping Jimmy. He turned back to her. "Yeah okay. I'll stop back before I head to the bar tomorrow."

"See if you can't find where Tommy's gotten himself to. I want to be sure he's okay."

Kevin put Jimmy's jacket back over Helen and grinned. "Ya know, he does have a heart."

Helen looked over at Jimmy who was snoring slightly, drool pooling at the corner of his mouth. "Yes."

"Should I wake him?"

"No. Let him sleep, he looks like he's had a hell of a night."

Jimmy finally stirred almost an hour after Kevin had left. The sounds of the nurses moving about, startled him and his eyes shot open. "What the fuck is going on?"

"Jimmy, it's fine." Helen whispered.

"Your mother is stable and can be moved from the ICU."

"Are you sure? You people did this to my baby brother and he almost died from blood clots! The fucking doctors up there are good for nothing!"

"Jimmy." Helen repeated a little louder with a warning behind it.

"Please, sir… or we'll have you removed."

Jimmy fell silent and backed out as they moved the bed into the hall and toward the elevator. He grabbed the cards and flowers from Helen's friends at church and followed behind.

When they had Helen settled into the crowded fourth floor ward, they left. Jimmy set the cards down in a stack and located a chair. Dragging it closer he sat down next to the bed. "This seems to be a running theme, huh?"

She nodded as she sat the bed up. "It needs to stop."

He shrugged. "Dokey's gone, did you wanna go to the funeral?"

She grimaced.

"There won't be one."

Jimmy turned to see the fair-haired Kate Farrell standing at the foot of the bed. "Did they just move you? They sent me to the ICU."

Helen nodded. "Yes, about five minutes ago. Why no funeral?"

Kate shrugged one shoulder easily. "I'm next of kin. I told them to bury the bastard, cheap and simple."

Jimmy grinned. "I knew there was a reason I liked you."

"Jimmy, why don't you take a walk so your mother and I can catch up?"

Jimmy hated leaving his mother alone in the hands of such a frail looking woman as Kate, but he stood reluctantly. "I'll be back in an hour."

"Behave yourself." Helen warned, knowing her eldest better than he knew himself.

"Yeah yeah yeah." He kissed her gently and smiled. "I will."

"Get outta here!" She pushed him with surprising strength and he laughed.

Kate spoke as soon as Jimmy was out of the room. "They're in deep aren't they?"

"I'm afraid so." Helen mumbled.

Kate sat and leaned close to the bed to avoid being overheard. "Day before Dokey shot you Tommy was asking me about Frannie Kenny and Longdale."

"Yeah, he asked me too. I wound up showing him the pictures. He kept on it though. I thought he'd drop it in the face of that, but he didn't. I don't know who holds those titles now, hell I don't know if Dokey ever got them in his name."

"I think it died with Huey." Kate whispered, a flash of pain as she said it. "I found out Al Onatero is dead. I don't know if it's related to Sal Minetta's death or not, but I do know Tommy's involved."

Helen shut her eyes tight. "When it was Bobby I could turn a blind eye to this shit. These… they're _my sons_, Kate."

Kate bit her lip. "I'd do the same if it were Matthew, but I don't think Tommy realizes is the deeper he gets-"

"The more people want you dead." Helen finished. "Is Trevor still tied to this?"

Kate sighed. "Not directly, at least I don't think so. Huey hasn't met with him for years, but that doesn't mean that Dokey didn't."

"I thought I was out. Bobby was gone, my ties to it were severed. How did they get into it?"

"I have no idea, Helen."

* * *

Tommy stood in an alleyway clenching a crowbar in his left hand. He _had_ to get the titled for every one of those buildings. It was his only out. He had to do it for Kevin, for Seannie, Jimmy and for Ma. He pressed his back against the cold stone building and angled the bar between the stone and the basement window. It was small, but if he could pop the whole frame, he could get in. It didn't take much effort for the eroding stone to give up the rotting wooden window frame.. He slid the window and the crowbar behind a nearby dumpster and leaned a piece of plywood at a step angle in front of the new opening. He slipped behind it and in through the small opening.

Now inside, he found himself standing on the top of one of the many shelves. It was less than a week ago when he and Kevin had followed Kenny as they waded through the decades of old files and paperwork. He dropped down from the shelf and immediately began searching through the files. They had stopped at Longdale itself, that would be where he'd pick up. He grabbed the file and sat on a chair - the chair. They had tied Frannie Kenny to it and beat him up for his non-answers. He looked at the ground around the base of the chair and saw blood still splattered from the fatal beating they'd administered to the old man. He quickly turned his face from the dried blood and the thought of what he'd done. He was turning into someone he didn't recognize. He made a mental note to have Sean and Kevin come back to scrub the blood off the concrete before anyone felt the need to venture into the old basement storage room. He located the deeds to every one of the properties represented in the Longdale folder. _So much for Kenny's insistence that Londgale was 'the end of the line'_. He pulled the chair back to the same shelf and used it to boost himself up and climb out.

* * *

Jimmy wandered up the hospital stairwell figuring it might kill more time than the elevator would. When he reached the fourth floor for the third time he saw Sean getting out of the elevator.

Sean rushed over. "When did they move her?"

"Just after I took over for Kevin. She's got Kate Farrell in there visiting with her. They asked me to _leave._" Jimmy feigned a pained and dejected look before he draped his arm over Sean's shoulder and leaned most of his weight on him.

"You're in pain, aren't you? Tommy was wrong, you haven't been using."

Jimmy shrugged. "Joanie isn't getting me any."

Sean put his arm around Jimmy's waste to help steady him. "There's other dealers. What's got you clean?"

Jimmy pulled away from Sean. "I just haven't had time." He stalked off toward the other end of the hall and the double doors that would lead into the full ward.

Sean followed him a little slower. "Hey, Kate. How are you?" He half mumbled as he walked toward them. He noticed Jimmy had busied himself with something near the bed, keeping his hands occupied and his mind off of Sean's prying questions.

"I'm well, Sean. How are you? I haven't seen much of you since Huey died."

"Yeah… I wish I could have been at the funeral." Sean leaned against the food table near the bed.

"He would have understood." She teased softly as she noted the scars on his face. "You look much better though."

"I feel it." He agreed. "Now it's Ma's turn."

Kate agreed as she shot Helen a look. "She will, she has four boys to help look after her." She leaned against the bed and hugged Helen gently. "I have to get back before Matthew. I'll see you soon."

"Thanks for coming by, Kate." Helen smiled, tipping her head slightly.

After the door had swung shut behind Kate, Jimmy blurted out his thoughts. "She's not too shabby, ey?"

Helen and Sean stared at him for a long time.

"What, you disagree?"

Helen shook her head. "No. She's always been a good looking woman."

"What did she see in Huey anyway?" Sean raised a questioning eyebrow, earning a laugh from Jimmy and Helen.

"Haven't a clue, Brother." Jimmy grinned. "I'm gonna go nap before heading to the Firecracer. Bye, Ma."

"Goodnight, Jimmy." She kissed him and shivered as she watched him leave.

Sean hurried to pull the blanket higher over her. "They're gonna kick me out any minute now. They have real visiting hours on this floor."

"I'll be fine, Seannie." She gave him a confident look.

"Yeah, but Tommy's going to hit the roof.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter Five**

Kevin and Sean slid through the small window and into the dimly lit basement of the mortgage records building. They eased off the shelf and onto the ground, a bag of chemicals going with them.

In his rage over learning more details of his father's brutal and fatal beating, Kevin had forgotten the blood he'd left to dry. Frannie Kenny was long gone, buried far from the place where he'd met his end. Fortunately for Kevin. Sean would help eliminate the remaining evidence.

They fumbled around in the darkening room, the sun sinking low behind the city blocks, buildings completely obscuring the rays from reaching the basement windows in the ally. Of course, it didn't help that the largest window had a piece of press board leaning over it to hide their entrance.

Sean popped the lid off of a gallon of bleach and poured it across the darkened stains. "Man, my eyes are burning!"

"What did you expect from bleach, Seannie?" Kevin held his sleeve over his nose as he pulled out a wire brush and began scrubbing the concrete floor, tiny speckles of cream colored cement beginning to show beneath the foaming bleach.

Sean turned his face and stifled a cough with his arm. The office building was empty, but they weren't sure what time the janitor might arrive. "I don't like this place at all."

Kevin shrugged. "Yeah, well… I learned everything I needed to about dad's death, right here." He pushed the chair over as they continued to brush and scrub away the blood.

It took nearly two hours to scour every last bit of blood that had seeped into each pore of the concrete surface and both brothers were worn out by the time the climbed from the basement. They popped the window back into place and drilled it securely into the frame. Than they gathered up their chemicals and the drill and hurried home, the street lights beginning to flicker on, lighting their path one by one.

* * *

Tommy had reached his breaking point as the ward nurses tried to convince him Helen Donnelly was doing well. "She was _shot_ in the heart less than a week ago!" He ran both hands through his damp hair, unsure of how he could talk them into putting her back into the ICU. "She should still be in intensive care, she needs us there! We can't even stay with her when she's on this floor!"

"Mr. Donnelly, you can see her briefly, but you cannot stay with her, no." The nurse placed both hands on the back of Tommy's shoulders and pointed him in the direction of the ward. "Now go before we have to deny you _any_ visitation."

Tommy threw his hands up and went down the hall. As he walked through the double doors he spotted Helen sitting on the bed with her legs hanging over the side her back to him. He crept over to keep from disturbing the other patients and sat beside her. "You must be doing as well as they say."

She rested her head on his shoulder. "I'm tired." She whispered. "That's all I know. I'm surprised they let you in after hours."

"Yeah, I kinda threw a fit. I don't think you should have been moved. I keep thinking about what happened after they moved Seannie."

"So do I, but I feel okay." She lifted her head from his shoulder. "They're not doing anything except checking blood, Tommy, I want to go home."

He stared into her pleading blue eyes. Such blue eyes. He remembered holding her shoulders as she sobbed when they thought they were losing Sean. He didn't want to see it again. "I think we'll be safe at home now that Dokey's gone." He whispered looking away from her while he did.

He watched her entire body slump as though whatever she'd been strong for through her life was finally no longer a burden for her.

She smiled softly and grasped his hand with her shaky one. "Please take me home, Tommy."

He knew she was right, she was possibly even better off at home, at least there she had at any given time at least one son to take care of her. He gathered up a pair of pants and a soft sweater they had brought her from home and gave them to her. He than crossed to the nurse's station to inform her that he'd be signing his mother out.

* * *

It wasn't long before Tommy had Helen home and was walking her slowly and carefully up the three flights of stairs to their apartment.

"It sounds like a zoo in there." Helen muttered as Tommy fished around his pockets for the key.

"Fuck it, Sean!"

"Shut up, Jimmy! You don't get it, fucking bullshit drugs? It's a wonder anyone ever helps you with anything!"

Tommy shoved the door open with his shoulder as he lifted Helen's bag up onto his other. He pushed himself against it so she could move in around him and he glared at each of his surprised brothers. "What the hell is going on?" He growled.

Kevin jumped up from the corner he'd been occupying and hurried to the door, slipping his arm under Helen's and around her back. "Let me help you, Ma."

She smiled at Kevin and tried not to look at the drugs scattered across the table. She didn't have the strength to fight with Jimmy today.

Jimmy scrambled to scoop the paraphernalia up and move it all out of sight.

Kevin eased her down into the old green arm chair and pulled her shoes off gently. "Want a chair for your feet?"

She stifled a laugh at the doting boy kneeling in front of her. "No, Kevin… but thank you, Hon."

He leaned up to kiss her on the cheek before grinning. "I'm glad your home, Ma."

She closed her eyes tight letting those precious words seep in, words she would walk through fire to hear, especially from them. When she opened them again, the had all settled in around the table. She looked at each one, pausing and reflecting as she made eye contact with them. She stopped at Jimmy. So much like his grandfather had been… her father-in-law… dead from a massive drug overdose. She and Bobby had found him lying on the steps up to his apartment and the cause had been very clear. She had been carrying Jimmy inside of her at the time, tiny and safe from those dangers. She knew even than she wouldn't be able to always protect him and now her piercing gaze studied him. It was almost daring, daring him to turn his face away in shame, but he was steady, not breaking for a moment. Why couldn't she reach him? The life she brought into the world on a frigid January night. She pushed herself off the chair and knelt in front of Jimmy. "You _have _to stop, Jimmy. It's going to kill you." Her eyes were swimming in unshed tears, making the blue look deeper. "Please, Jimmy." She never begged. Not for anything and not like this, but she couldn't lose her firstborn. It would be beyond her ability to bear.

Jimmy betrayed none of the emotions that swirled in him. He hated hurting her like this and those eyes were hard to lie to. Not that he didn't, he always lied, but she always knew.

She stared a little longer before looking down and closing her eyes tight. She bit her lip hard and brought her hand to grasp her chest. A slow movement, but one that startled them all. Both Kevin and Tommy were beside her instantly, steadying her as she opened her eyes, the pain again slipping away.

"Tommy, I think it was too soon." Kevin whispered, a fierce concern evident in his voice.

Tommy shook his head. "No, they were pumping her full of painkillers and taking blood. They didn't even have monitors on her. She's better off home where we can watch her."

Kevin knew better than to argue once Tommy's mind was made up so he instead busied himself with helping Helen to her room and getting her settled in.

As soon as they were gone and the door shut Sean whirled around and pointed at Jimmy. "I _told_ you it hurts her!"

"Shut up." Jimmy had no strength behind those words this time. It _was_ hurting her and he could see it. Sean had it right and there was no real denying it. He had gone over a week without before finally shelling out double to Mrs. McReady just to get a quick high. After seeing his mother's eyes holding back the fear and sadness, he regretted every moment of that fix. "I _know_ what it does to her." He conceded as he pulled his old jacket on and left the apartment without another word.

Sean wiped his eyes with a sleeve, trying desperately to stop the tears. "Fucking stupid."

Tommy was still sitting at the table. "It'll be okay, Seannie. Why don't you go get some air?" He put his hand on Sean's shoulder and gave him a halfhearted smile.

"Yeah thanks, Tommy."

Tommy was left sitting alone in the nearly empty apartment. He sighed and let his shoulder's slump. He laid his head on the table, all but his full weight resting on his arms.

"Where are they?"

Tommy looked up from the table to see Kevin at the fridge, one hand on the door, the other holding a soda. "Out for fresh air. She doing alright?"

"Yeah, Tommy she's good. Fine." Kevin took the soda back to the room leaving Tommy alone.

* * *

"Tommy!"

Tommy jumped, realizing he had fallen asleep at the table, the moon now at a point where the light streamed in through the window.

"Tommy!"

It wasn't a dream. He jumped up and scrambled to his mother's room where Kevin had his cell phone pressed to his ear while he held a towel against Helen's chest.

Helen looked pale and it was obvious she had lost a lot of blood already. Tommy sat on the bed and took over holding the towel while Kevin spoke to the 911 operator.

"Yeah, 82nd apartment 3 F. Hurry up, my mom's lost a lot of blood!" Kevin let the phone slide off his shoulder and fall onto the bed. "Aww shit, Tommy. I told you!"

"What the hell happened?"

"She started not making any sense. When I moved the blanket there was a ton of blood." Kevin stood back, letting his blood soaked hands hang at his side while Tommy worked to slow the bleeding.

"Can you hear me, Ma? Ma!" Tommy wasn't getting a response as he watched her teeter on the edge of unconsciousness.

They could now hear the approaching sirens fighting the late night city traffic.

"Hurry…" Kevin whispered, tears pouring down his cheeks. "Please, hurry."

"The door, Kevin!" Tommy yelled as he scooped his mother into his arms, her body limp and frail. He had no intention of waiting for the paramedics to get inside and up to their apartment.

Kevin opened the front door and they both hurried to the ground level. The ambulance was pulling to the curb as they emerged into a steady rain. The paramedics met them at the sidewalk where Tommy laid her on the stretcher. They put her in and shut the doors, speeding off into the night and leaving the two brothers in the cold rain watching them disappear.

"You were right, Kevin. I'm sorry." Tommy's voice was hoarse as the emotion came through in his words. "If she doesn't - It's my fault."

Kevin didn't respond and they both stood their in the rain for a few minutes before Sean came around the corned, the beautiful Nadine walking beside him.

Sean froze when he saw his brothers' blood soaked arms and shirts. "Oh, god!"

Tommy grabbed Sean as he started to run. He tried pulling away, but Tommy held tight. "They'll take her back to the ICU, she'll be watched closer this time."

Sean crumbled to the wet sidewalk and sobbed quietly, rocking back and forth, Tommy holding onto him.

Kevin slumped onto the bottom step of the apartment stoop as he watched his brothers in silence.

Nadine was quiet too, but her heart ached for Sean. She didn't know what happened, knew nothing of the past week, but she could see the devastation cutting through the boys. She felt their pain in a strange way, as though she were connected to them. She listened as the older brother told Sean they'd go to the hospital and wait for news. "Can I come with you?" She whispered.

Sean attempted to smile at Nadine. "I'd like that." He managed.

Tommy helped Sean up and the four began the long walk to the hospital. As they walked, Kevin searched his pockets for his phone. "I left my cell at home, we need to call Jimmy."

"We'll call him from the hospital, don't worry about it. He's probably high anyway, mom doesn't need that tonight." Tommy fell back into the uncomfortable silence as they quickened their steps toward the looming hospital building. They were greeted by the same ICU nurse who had sent her to the fourth floor earlier that day.

"She's stable, but she's lost a lot of blood. They're going to want her in at least 48 hours, but the stress of two much movement is what caused the bleeding in the first place."

Tommy thanked the woman as he dialed Jimmy's number from the waiting room phone.


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

Joanie giggled as Jimmy chased her around her coffee table and through her small and trashed apartment. His high had long worn of and he was even grateful she didn't have anything to give him. She had enrolled herself in an outpatient rehab facility downtown and looked better than ever. Right not, they were going to have some fun and relax, take their minds far from the troubles their lives were wrought with.

Joanie squealed, a blood curdling sound as Jimmy managed to capture her and throw her down on the bed. She continued the unabated giggling as he pushed her hair away from her face.

"I don't know if I'm any good for you." He whispered, his face taking a serious look on.

"What do you mean?"

"I was high today," He started. "Got a couple ounces from Old Lady McGredy."

Joanie turned her head to the side and chewed her lip for a bit. She felt the warmth from his body on top of her and could feel his heart racing against hers. Looking back up at him she touched his temple and traced his jaw line before resting her finger on his lips. "You can't stay clean without help, Jimmy. I can help you, your Ma will help you. Look at me, I haven't felt this good in a long time."

He held his breath and lowered his face slowly to touch hers, nuzzling his nose against her cheek and finding her lips. He'd never been this gentle, but he loved Joanie.

Neither of them heard his phone playing.

* * *

Tommy hung up the waiting room phone and looked over at his brothers and Nadine. "I'm not wasting my time on him, let's go see Ma."

Helen was lying flat in the darkened room listening to the chaos next door. An alarm had gone off and a patient crashed. She wanted to block the sounds out, block out the sobbing wife who was begging the doctors to revive him, block out the shouts from each as they tried to resuscitate. She wanted to go home where she was safe and her sons were there to take care of her. She didn't hear her boys come in until Sean spoke.

"Are you awake, Mom?"

"Yes." She opened her eyes slowly and pointed toward the light switch. She wanted to see them.

Tommy flipped the switch on and followed his two younger brothers to her bedside.

"So much for going home." She gave them a halfhearted smile before letting it fade.

Sean choked back the sob he felt rising and he turned, intent on running from the room.

"Seannie…?"

He froze, hearing the weakness of Helen's voice, the very thing he wanted to run from. "Ma… Ma I… I can't watch this… not again."

Nadine touched his arm. "Yes you can." She whispered. "I'll be here with you."

He closed his eyes, but the tears managed to escape anyway. "I can't."

"You have to." Her whisper was barely audible now. "Your mother needs you."

"But what if she-"

"Ssh… don't think about that. Just be here for her." Nadine wrapped her arms around his neck from the side and kissed his cheek. She held on for a sweet moment before pulling away. "Okay?"

He smiled softly after another moment and nodded. "Okay." He turned and walked over to Helen's side, leaning down to kiss her. "I'll stay."

She had been studying him closely, despite the pain medication that was threatening to take her away. Satisfied she let her eyes close and mumbled to him. "Thank you."

* * *

Jimmy's eyes opened slowly, the soft morning light coming through the thin curtains. He wiped the drool from his mouth and scratched at the stubble on his chin. Joanie was beside him, her bare flesh partly covered in a soft sheet. She looked comfortable as he wrapped his strong arms around her. He still liked the idea of marrying her, but he wanted to be the right kind of guy. He closed his eyes as his mind wandered back to his mother, begging him to stop the drugs. She'd never even mentioned it before, though he was sure she had known for a long time. Maybe she was naive enough to thing it helped the chronic pain from the accident. It wasn't true, but he told everyone it was. If anything, it gave him something else to think about.

"You're up early, Jimmy." He bright smile greeted him as he opened his eyes again.

"Yes, I had an itch."

She laughed, an infectious giggle and it always worked on him. "Hey, I might have been dreaming, but I heard your phone going off."

He got up, letting the sheet fall from him as he fished through the pile of clothes on the floor.

"The table maybe?" She offered as she sat up and leaned against the headboard.

"Yeah." He left the bedroom and reappeared a moment later. "There's a dozen missed calls."

Joanie saw the panicked look that dashed across his face. "I'm sure it's nothing."

"Tommy brought Ma home, it might be- it's an unknown number." He started to get antsy as he dropped the phone on the bed and hurried to dress.

Joanie did the same, following it up with a clip pulling her hair back.

"That's pretty."

She glanced up from the bathroom mirror to see him standing there holding his belt, which had only made it through two loops. She felt herself blushing. Jimmy never complimented her before. Maybe things were changing. She whipped a wet wash cloth at him. "Wash your face so we can go check on your Ma." She gave him a crooked smile as she left the bathroom in search of shoes.

Joanie's apartment was only two blocks from the Donnelly home, so they walked in relative silence, broken only by the sounds of nearby traffic. They made their way upstairs an into the apartment.

"Tommy? Kev?" Jimmy peaked into first bedroom with the bunks. "Seannie?"

"Oh my God, Jimmy! Your mother's bed is covered in blood."

Jimmy froze beside Joanie at the foot of the double bed in his mother's tiny room. Kevin's cell was lying on the sheets, covered with dried bloody fingerprints. "They called from the hospital." He whispered with a sudden realization.

Joanie grabbed his hand and they hurried out, as fast as Jimmy's bum leg could carry him.

When they reached the ICU, they found Kevin, Sean and Nadine sitting in a vacant room, the bed had some blood on it and an orderly was removing the sheets.

"Where's Ma?"

Sean looked up quickly from his magazine. "She's walking in the halls with Tommy. They want to make sure she's not gonna bleed again.

"We called you." Kevin interrupted as he stood facing his brother.

Joanie stepped between them. "That was my fault, Kevin. We were goofing and didn't hear his phone."

Kevin sighed and collapsed back into the chair. "I'm just on edge I guess. It was scary Jimmy."

Jimmy reached forward and squeezed the younger man's shoulder. "Fear not, little brother." He gave him a wink and left to look through the halls for Tommy an Ma.

He found them on the opposite end of the ICU floor walking slowly, IV line still strung out to her wrist. Helen looked pale and weak, but she was smiling. Tommy was probably telling a tasteless joke. He came up behind them and slipped his arm around Helen's waste, less for support than of love. "Hey, Ma."

"We didn't know where you were." Her voice was barely audible, a non-norm for Helen Donnelly, a definite sign of the trauma that had assaulted her body.

"I was with Joanie, I wish I'd heard my phone, Ma… I'd have been here in a second."

Tommy walked silently on Helen's other side as Jimmy explained to his mother that he was going to enroll in the same program that Joanie was in.

Helen's eyes sparkled at this news. "That's wonderful, Jimmy. You can do it, I know you can."

Tommy could never figure his mother out. She had so much faith in Jimmy, even though he seemed to let her down every single time. He would see the pride in her eyes and it confused him anyone else would have given up on someone so obviously hopeless, and yet she clung to the hope.

A nurse approached to check Helen's pressure and vitals and followed it up with a stern warning that she should sit and rest every few minutes.

Tommy and Jimmy led Helen to a small glass enclosed sitting area with windows out into the street. The very same place from which he'd watched Frankie arrest Jimmy. They helped her ease down into a spot that was perfectly situated for the morning sunlight to warm her. They both sat to her left beneath another window and talked together while they watched her stare into the sky.

Probably thinking about Dad… Tommy mused without real reason or proof of it. But the Catholic in her always though about Heaven and what her husband would be doing. After all Tommy had learned about his father, he was pretty sure Purgatory was his current home, but he dare not say so. She probably thought that too, but maybe God had given him a lighter sentence for her sake.

* * *

"Obviously, Tommy isn't home."

"Shut the fuck up, Vinnie!"

Nicky continued banging hard on the door. "Go get a tire iron from my car. And don't scratch the trunk!"

Vinnie did as he was told and reappeared a moment later, his hand clasping the curved metal rod.

Nicky took it and pushed it into the door jam smoothly. He pulled it to the side, popping the lock. The door swung open to reveal the homey little apartment. "Find those deeds. If Tommy really has them, they'll be here."

Vinnie dutifully began searching the kitchen, turning drawers and cupboards inside out and shattering dishes and glasses. A full set of hand painted tea cups, probably one of those daunting wedding gifts, crashed to the floor at Vinnie's touch, shattering into thousands of pieces.

Nicky took the first bedroom. Bunkbeds were on the wall to the left and there was two desks and a tall dresser to the right. Clothing was draped over the chairs and scattered around the floor and there was a corkboard covered in pictures of the brothers as younger children. "Vinnie, they were happy once!" Nicky mocked as he began flipping the mattresses and searching the tiny bedroom.

"Nothing!" Vinnie hollered from the kitchen as he moved into the dining-living room area. "This woman has a lot of shit!"

Nicky peered out and looked around the living room. "Must be an Irish thing. Although, my mother has the same Virgin Mary statue." He mulled over that sudden connection before ducking back into the small room for a final glance. He than crossed to the bathroom and searched the medicine cabinet, pulling it off the wall and dropping it to the sink.

"Fuck! Nicky.. It's fucking Bobby Donnelly!"

Nicky stepped out into the hallway, confusion etched on his face as he approached Vinnie He took the stack of 8x10s from Vinnie's fingers and flipped through them. "What kind of whacked out bitch keeps pictures of her murdered husband?"

Vinnie stared at Nicky, no response needed. Helen Donnelly always seemed to them to be a strange woman. In their early years slaving for Sal Minetta, they'd watch her go with Bobby to join Jack Trevor and the Farrell brothers for elegant meals. She never seemed particularly interested in the elegance or the meals, but she was always there at his side. At least she was until Sean was born. It had given Nicky great pleasure to introduce the punk brat to the spectre of death. He tossed the pictures on the table and moved to the Master bedroom. "I think I know where Tommy Donnelly is this fine morning."

It was Vinnie's turn to leave his post an investigate. He peered in around Nicky and smiled. "Guess Ma's not doing good."

Nicky nodded as he started searching the room, convinced already the deeds wouldn't be there. But thorough had a solid meaning to it and Nicky Cottero was nothing if not thorough.

"I found some of Tommy's shit!" Vinnie was in the bedroom directly off the dining area and he was searching the bedside table, dumping out art supplies and throwing around sheets of drawings. Most of the sketches were quite obviously of Jenny Riley, many of them on the back of the Diner's own placemats.

"Fucked up kid like Tommy wouldn't seem to be very artistic." Nicky mumbled as he watched Vinnie from the door.

"He's not half-bad."

"Shut up." Nicky wasn't particularly interested in Tommy as anything but a parasite, slime to dispose of "Finish this room, if we don't find-"

Vinnie's expression made Nicky stop short.

"Son of a bitch… he really did have them." Nicky breathed as he grasped the files Vinnie was holding. "Smokestack Butchers occupies the first. Checks in at 2.7 mill in commercial worth. Longdale properties no longer belongs to the fucking Micks. Let's go.

They quietly slipped out of the building, leaving the neighborhood and returning to their own kind.

To Be Continued.


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter Seven**

Tommy and Jimmy had fallen into a comfortable silence while they watched their mother sleep. The others had gone to eat lunch, but neither of the two eldest were able to pull themselves away.

"All of this-" Jimmy swept his arm grandly in front of him. "It's all because of me, you know. All of this shit-it's because of me."

Tommy was tired, and remained silent while Jimmy lived out loud his few lucid moments. He studied his fingers and sighed to himself as his brother continued the rant.

One by one the rest of the family returned, and trailing them was Jenny. She gave Tommy a smile through obvious pain as she motioned for him to leave with her.

As soon as he made it out of the ICU and into a small empty waiting room, Jenny was in his arms, crying hard against his chest. It caught him off guard and he pushed her back, not quite sure what to do.

"I'm sorry for everything." She managed through hot tears. "I want to be with you."

He stared a her unsure of what he wanted anymore, confused by the mind games she'd played the past few months. He couldn't deny he loved her, but he wasn't sure if he wanted to be with her. "I don't know, Jenny."

"I killed Samson!" She blurted out in a rushed whisper. "I'm scared, I'm alone, my dad… the tests… he has Alzheimer's. I don't want to be by myself, I've always loved you. It's not just all of the sudden."

He held his breath as hers became ragged with the fear and frustration she was carrying. He wiped at the sweat from the back of his neck and ran his hand through his hair. That habit he was certain he picked up from Ma. "What happened? What did he do to you?"

"We can't…" She was looking behind him and he turned to see Sean and Kevin watching from the hall.

They couldn't hear a thing, but he grabbed her arm and took her into the elevator anyway. They would find somewhere to talk.

* * *

By the time Sean and Kevin had been finished with their eavesdropping attempt and had returned to the room, Helen was sitting upright, with some color to her face.

A small framed nurse poked her head around both boys and grinned wide. "Ah, Helen Donnelly! It's good to see you feeling better than your chart tells me. You were shot, nearly died on them, and now you're back for more? Ha ha! Oh, I am sorry I wasn't here, you would have been fine in a day!"

Helen smiled back, sweeter than the boys ever recalled seeing. She held her hand up to the nurse that was now scooting around the boys to hug Helen.

"I was away on a small trip, just got back in and saw your admit forms, which, by the way, are not signed. Who admitted you?"

Helen shook her head. "My Tommy, he just left."

"I was with him, Ma." Kevin interrupted and took the form that the nurse shoved in his direction.

As Kevin filled out the papers, Jimmy, Joanie, Sean and Nadine watched Helen interact with the nurse in a friendly and … daresay loving way.

"These are the _babies_?" She laughed as she reached out to Sean and patted his shoulder. "Not so much, ey?"

Helen laughed. "No, not at all."

"They do look like Bobby, Helen." She smiled at her and looked back at the boys, who were now further confused.

"Jimmy, Kevin and Sean." She pointed to each. "And than there's Tommy."

Kevin handed the form back to the nurse and pursed his lips before asking. "Do we know you?"

"I delivered you, Babe!" The nurse all but cackled at Kevin's reaction.

"All four." Helen added. "This is Miriam, she's worked forever."

"Don't date me now." She smiled.

The boys each greeted Miriam before ducking out to give the women some privacy.

* * *

Across town in a dimly lit bar, Vinnie sat with a cold beer in his hand. The frosty mug was creating beads of ice beneath his fingers, tempting him to take a drink, but he waited. He wanted to see what Nicky was going to do as he examined each deed closely. He sat, and waited, and did not touch that beer as the self-proclaimed Italian mob boss on the other end of the bar reveled in his win.

"It's not enough!" Nicky finally announced making Vinnie jump, sloshing his beer across the counter.

"I thought you said it was worth millions?" Vinnie protested as he took the rag from the bar tender and made a show of wiping it up.

"Oh, I didn't mean the deeds, Vinnie." Nicky locked eyes with his brainless counterpart and grinned. "I mean business with Tommy. I don't want to work with these Irish like Alo was so content to do."

Vinnie raised an eyebrow at Nicky, but kept quiet. If Vinnie had learned anything working with Nicky it was times like these were best left without comment.

* * *

Tommy tried not to fidget as Sean eased his new car close to their apartment steps. None of them were eager to attempt Ma's homecoming again after the last time, but she was discharged properly, and with Miriam's blessing.

Sean set the emergency brake and killed the engine. Silence filled as the ticking of the cooling radiator slowed and than stopped. The boys sat quiet, staring ahead as Helen leaned forward, pressing her hands against the dashboard.

She looked sideways at Sean and than back down at the floor of the car. "It will be alright this time."

Despite the promise, neither Sean nor Tommy moved or spoke.

Helen looked up and caught Tommy's eyes in the visor mirror. "You two will have to wait on me hand and foot."

Tommy stared back, allowing a crooked smile as he did. "You were kidding yourself if you thought we'd let you do anything, Ma."

Sean had shifted to face Helen so he could see her and his older brother at the same time. "First sign of pain, Ma -"

"Straight to the hospital." Helen lifted her hands in surrender. "You'll have no argument from me."

Another lapse into silence before Tommy moved to leave the back seat of the car. He opened Helen's door and slid his arm around her helping her out of the low vehicle and onto the curb.

Sean went around to the trunk and grabbed the small bag of clothes she'd accumulated during her second stint in the ICU.

Helen gripped Tommy's shoulder tight as they went up the apartment steps and it struck him that she seemed significantly weaker this time. He held her waste tightly with one arm as he fished through his pockets for a key.

"Kevin should be up there." Sean was still half a flight of steps below as Tommy and Helen reached the third floor.

"No, Seannie… door's locked."

They exchanged glances as Sean began mumbling about responsibility and Kevin.

Helen managed a smile. "Oh leave your brother alone."

"Yes, Ma." Sean had reached the top as Tommy shoved the door open to let him and Helen's bag pass. Sean froze in the open doorway and Helen walked right into him. He grabbed her arm from the side as he steadied her, but didn't tear his eyes from the trashed apartment.

Tommy pulled a gun from his back and eased around the two.

"Tommy, no…" Helen whispered as he went by. They waited as he went to the far end of the apartment and back.

"No one's here." He slid the gun back into his waist band, and the shape of it disappeared under his jacket.

"What the hell happened?"

Tommy shook his head. "I'm not sure, Ma, but I have a theory or two."

Sean let Tommy help Ma as he started turning shelves back upright and filling drawers with their belongings near the dining room table. His hand hit a stack of glossy 8x10 photos and he fished them up, arranging them and flipping them over. It took him a moment to catch the images of his father's bloodied body and when he did his hands began to shake. Blood covered, beaten and lifeless. Not something peanut butter does. He stared at it. His brothers told him what happened to his father, but it'd seemed tdo extreme to him. He never quite believed it was that bad.

Helen was continuing her onslaught of questions that Tommy couldn't answer until suddenly she stopped and pushed herself out of the chair. "Seannie..?"

Tommy turned to see that his baby brother had those damn pictures. "Oh, no." He whispered, still on one knee next to the chair.

"Sean….?" Helen used the table for support as she made her way to where he was kneeling. She knelt down next to him and grabbed the pictures, pulling them from his shaking fingers.

He wiped his eyes and stared at his hands.

"You weren't supposed to _ever_ see these, Seannie." Helen choked out.

He nodded. "Yeah, I guess not."

She held the pictures against her chest, wrinkling them as she did. She pushed his hair out of his eyes and wiped a tear with her thumb. "I am so sorry."

Tommy was now behind Helen and he crouched down. He reached around her and took the stack between his fingers. "Ma, we don't need these anymore. Let me get rid of them."

She nodded, letting go of them easily before wrapping her arms around Sean.

Tommy grabbed a lighter from the prayer candles on the center of the table and left. "Seannie, stay with her!" He yelled as the door slammed shut.

Sean pulled back and stared at his mother, she was crying too. He hugged her again. "It's okay, Ma. I guess I had to find out sometime."

"What the fuck!"

Sean and Helen both jumped at Jimmy's exclamation.

He let the door slam into the wall as he limped into the room and hit the fridge with the palm of his hand. "Fuckin' Dokey's people!"

Joanie closed the door quietly as she and Kevin came in behind Jimmy.

"We don't know that for sure." Seannie started.

"Fuckin' stealing shit!"

"We don't know that either." Helen was measured as she wiped the last tears and pulled herself off the floor. "Nothing's missing."

"Oh you can tell, Ma?" Jimmy dropped to a chair at the table and sighed. He looked up at his mother as his anger level began dropping back to normal and realized she'd been crying. "You alright?"

She shrugged. "Yeah."

He stood back up and hugged her, practically lifting her off the floor before turning to Kevin. "What do you think they wanted?"

Joanie growled. "Should have killed them all."

Both Kevin and Jimmy stared at her for a moment.

"You won't know what they wanted until you know who did it and you have a lot of enemies, Jimmy." Helen leaned on the back of one of the chairs.

"Hello, Donnellys." Nicky was standing in the doorway, his hands clenched together in front of him. Vinnie was behind him, his taller frame menacing behind Cottero.

"What do you want, Nicky?" Jimmy was seething as he reached for the gun he had shoved into the front of his pants.

"Uh uh… I wouldn't." Nicky's voice was laced with contempt and warning as he spoke.

Jimmy slid his hand slowly off the gun and dropped it to the side.

Vinnie stepped forward, yanking the gun out and handing it to Nicky.

"Where's your other brother?" Nicky glanced around as he pulled the hammer on the gun, and than smoothly let it release without hitting the pin. He did it a few times, aiming it at Jimmy's good leg as he did.

"Dunno, Nicky." Jimmy was glaring. "You deal with me. I'm the older one."

"You, I hate." Nicky turned to Kevin. "Where is he?"

"What do you want with Tommy?" Kevin sounded tough suddenly as he spoke.

"Nothing."

Vinnie pushed Kevin and Jimmy aside to allow Nicky to pass by and ease down to the head of the table, leaving the kitchen at his back. "Mrs. Donnelly, join me?"

Helen didn't move. She stared across at the man she now knew nearly killed Sean. "I want you to leave my house."

"You're fucked up." Vinnie couldn't hold back. He was still trying to figure out the pictures of Bobby.

Helen kept her eyes on Nicky who was running his fingers over Jimmy's gun, almost gently.

"Do they know? Did you tell them you sent their father to his death? Why did you have those pictures, Helen?" Nicky wasn't really curious, he knew enough about it.

Sean flinched visibly as he asked.

Nicky smiled. "Little Seannie saw them huh?"

Helen leaned her weight fully on the table and pushed her face inches from him. "Get out of my house!"

Nicky leaned forward too, forcing Helen to pull back. "Not until Tommy is lying dead on the floor."

Helen didn't react to his threat. She held her face expressionless. "What do you want with Tommy?"

"This round is getting boring." Vinnie grunted.

Nicky nodded. "I want the neighborhood, Helen." He stood and shoved her back.

She lost her grip on the table and fell to the floor. Kevin hurried to her side asnd reached for her, helping her sit up against the wall.

"Get this bullshit out of here." She managed.

"I can't do that." Nicky pulled a chair out. "Now, how about we sit down and discuss those pictures like two reasonable human beings?"

She caught her breath before letting Kevin help her to the chair Nicky indicated. She winced at the ache in her chest she was sure would upset her doctors. "I'm not prepared to discuss it with you."

"You better be." Vinnie stood by the fridge, leaning against it casually.

"You know," Nicky began. "I told Tommy about that day. I told him you sent Bobby down, I told him who did the beating."

Helen kept her New York temper in check as much as possible. "Cottero… I thought that name sounded familiar. Huey Farrell told me he and Sal had you there that day. You were supposed to make sure he went in."

"I did my job well. Even Jimmy helped." Nicky nodded toward the oldest.

"What?" Jimmy's silence wasn't held back long.

Nicky shrugged. "The day Huey had your dad killed, Jimmy. You were sitting in the car, listening to music. I asked you where your father was. You told me."

Jimmy's mind registered quickly as he realized he spoke to people involved in his father's death. "I'm gonna fuckin' kill you!"

Vinnie grabbed Jimmy's arm and made a point of looking down at the gun Nicky had, now trained on Joanie.

"Jimmy, your father was a filthy criminal. A piece of Irish shit crawling the underbelly's of an Italian city. And that's all you are."

* * *

To be continued...


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

Helen squeezed her eyes shut, but all she could see was Bobby being kicked and beaten by Huey and Sal's men, Nicky laughing in the background, maybe helping. She gathered enough strength to throw herself at Nicky, knocking him off the chair and to the ground. She laced her fingers around his neck and pressed her thumbs against his windpipe.

He flailed underneath her, attempting to knock her off, but the pressure on his throat was making him dizzy.

Vinnie wrapped his arms around Helen and pulled her off of Nicky as she screamed at him. He threw her at the wall and helped Nicky up.

"I want Tommy here, now!" Nicky screamed out. "I'll fucking kill Sean!" He pressed the gun to Sean's head and everyone quieted.

Kevin was kneeling next to Helen who was lying on the ground, afraid to move. He stood up slowly. "He doesn't have a cell, we can't call him."

"Than we'll continue to wait." Nicky's voice was strained from being choked and he angled a glance at Helen. "Keep fucking around and you'll see Bobby sooner than you planned."

Helen lifted her head a little and winced. "We'll do what you want."

Vinnie smirked. "Mama's got a weakness."

Kevin was still standing above her and Jimmy moved very slowly to Helen to help her up.

"Sit." Nicky pointed as he turned his own chair back up, keeping the gun aimed at Sean. "Now, I have what I want. However, as long as Jimmy breathes, Tommy will be a problem for me. If I kill Jimmy, we'll all get along well, but than Tommy may want some sort of violent revenge and our cozy working relationship will be shot to hell."

"Your concern is touching." Helen snarled. She kept her gaze fixed on the gun.

"Let's talk." Vinnie cut in. "Do you want to talk?"

"Not really." Helen looked away, than to her sons, before back at Vinnie and Nicky. "I kept them… the pictures… to remind me what kind of animals you all are. I wanted to also remember to keep my sons out of it."

"Worked out well." Nicky slid the gun into his pants and waved Sean away. "Here's the thing about this, Helen, we find it a little odd Tommy wants to work with us, a little fishy. He discussed it with you I imagine?"

"Not a word."

"Oh?" Nicky looked genuinely surprised. "This is not an unknown world to you, Helen, I'd be surprised if you haven't killed half as many people as Bobby."

"I haven't."

"But you've killed."

Helen stared at him for a moment and shook her head.

"Come on, you're not a neat and clean woman. What about Frannie's nephew? "

"I had nothing to do with that!" She spit out.

"He said otherwise. Something about Jack Trevor handing you the poison… that it was their means of pulling him off the deeds?"

Helen turned away from him. "I didn't know the drink was poisoned."

"You sat there, in that bar with Michael Kenney and you mean to tell me you didn't know it until he dropped down from the stool?"

Helen sat quiet again.

"You may have known it…"

"I wouldn't put it past them to do it." She bit back.

"So you handed him a drink the Councilman gave to you knowing it was probably poisoned?"

"Yes." She slumped back in the chair, refusing to make eye contact with Jimmy, Kevin and Sean.

They in turn, simply stared at their perfect Irish-Catholic mother.

"Ma?" Sean tipped his head to the side as he studied her.

"Interesting." Nicky looked at each of them before back at Helen. "They know nothing of your past, and so tell you nothing of theirs."

"The properties are yours. I'm sure Kate Farrell wouldn't blink before signing them over."

"Rich women are often greedy women." Nicky muttered as he stared at Helen, trying to figure her out. He found it amusing, the brothers' reactions to the truth. He looked up at Kevin and Sean. "Sit down, let's talk about your mother's murderous side."

Vinnie was watching Joanie, who was still in the corner, looking frightened. "I don't know you."

Nicky turned and spotted Joanie for the first time and tipped his head. "_Who_ are you?"

"I… um- I-" Joanie stammered as she sat beneath the window.

"Speechless?" Nicky stood and moved closer to her. "I have that effect on young ladies."

"Don't touch her." Jimmy growled.

Immediately Nicky whipped the gun back out and slammed it against Sean's head. "Tell me what I can and can't do again, and I'll put a bullet in his face!"

Helen fought every urge to move, but she was afraid doing so would have a similar response to the current threat that hung in the air. "Seannie?" She whispered.

He nodded. "I'm okay."

"We don't care." Vinnie cut in with a growl.

* * *

Tommy sat on the bottom step in the Firecracker's basement. He flicked the lighter on and off as he stared at the top picture. He could see the bottom of Helen's dress in the photo and could only imagine why she was there. Did Huey want her to see? Some sort of silent threat to demonstrate his power over her? Ma knew Huey did it, and yet she still let them see him and love him as an Uncle. They'd called him Uncle for years. What kind of things did Huey tell her to make her surrender them to his presence? Tears dripped down his face as he remembered how hard she had cried at the cemetery. She'd leaned against the coffin and no one could get her to leave. Finally, everyone just left her there, her and the four of them as she calmed down.

It was time. The wrong person had seen them, Sean had seen them. He would now destroy them for the sake of their family. For Ma. The flame from the lighter flickered against the corner of the stack and began melting the glossy surface. Slowly the flame grew and licked up the sides until he could no longer hold it. He dropped the stack to the ground and they quickly blazed bright before shriveling into a small smolder of ash. The dirt on the concrete floor mixing with the inked paper made a funny smell and it began to spark before Tommy smothered it with the sole of his shoe.

He left the bar and walked home, intent on ending the masquerade and telling his Mother everything he had done. Right from the beginning. She deserved that much from her son. He crossed the street at the walk, and completely missed seeing Nicky's car parked out in the open, two doors from his apartment building.

* * *

Helen felt sick as she heard the keys hit the lock on their apartment door. She closed her eyes to keep from seeing the smirk on Nicky's face. This was what he wanted, Tommy was home, he'd make his complete intentions clear and probably kill them all. The door clicked shut and a moment later Tommy rounded the corner into the kitchen.

Tommy froze when he saw his mother's and brothers in the same room as Nicky Cotterro. He'd been angry enough when Nicky had merely asked Ma for directions. "I've got the deeds." His voice was just above a whisper as he indicated his bedroom with the slightest move of his hand.

"Let me correct you, Tommy Donnelly." Nicky had a huge grin on his face as he waved the gun. "I have the deeds, and you were right, it is a lovely net worth if only in my name. Shouldn't be too difficult, how old is Matthew Farrell?"

Tommy held both hands out to his sides to show complete cooperation. "Than go, Nicky. Kate will sign them over."

"So your mother says." Nicky pointed absently with the gun.

Tommy looked at Helen who's arms were badly bruised and than at Sean who had a gash across the side of his head. "Please, Nicky, just go."

"No, not yet. You're right, I can easily get _Miss_ Farrell to agree with me. Go sit with the girl, Kevin, let Tommy there." He nodded toward Joanie, who looked as though she were about to cry.

Kevin moved slowly out of the chair and eased down beneath the window next to Joanie, whispering something to her as he did.

"One big happy family." Vinnie taunted as he crossed his arms and watched what Nicky was doing.

Nicky picked up a picture frame and let it slip from his fingers, shattering over the floor. "This big happy family may end up dead tonight, Vinnie." He turned to Tommy, who's back was to him at the table. "Play your cards right, Tommy and some of you may live to morning."

"Some, Nicky?" Tommy's voice betrayed his skepticism at even that slight promise and he turned to look at him.

Nicky circled back to his spot, facing away from the kitchen. "That afternoon at the Pizza Parlor… Jimmy pulled a gun on me."

"He was high."

"He's always high!" Nicky shot back. "Do you know a damned soul in this town who _will_ work with Jimmy?"

"I can control him." Tommy countered.

"I doubt that, very much." Nicky dismissed the idea with a wave. "You should have let Huey and Sal kill him that night. Life would have been much easier for the Donnellys."

"He's my brother."

Vinnie chuckled lightly. "Unfortunate for you."

Nicky nodded. "It is unfortunate. Huey and Sal's death keeps coming back to haunt you, doesn't it? Doesn't bother me, you did me a favor, getting rid of Sal. And Huey was difficult to work with even more so."

Tommy was watching Nicky, but didn't respond to that.

Nicky tapped Helen's arm with the gun, making her open her eyes again. "That's why you got shot, you know? Ultimately. Because Tommy shot Huey and Dokey… Tommy told Dokey he did it."

"Honesty gets you nowhere." Jimmy warned from behind Tommy.

"He's right." Nicky conceded. "So much like… dear old Bobby, Tommy is, isn't he?"

Helen let her eyes shut again, trying to block it all out, trying to forget what she was seeing.

"Right?" Nicky was aggravated as he prompted her again.

"Yes." Helen mumbled. She opened her eyes again and locked them with Tommy.

"Ma…" Tommy was crying, tears quietly dripping down his cheeks.

"Don't make us all uncomfortable with a long dramatic apology for your misdeeds and wrongdoings." Nicky groaned. "Besides, as your brothers can now attest to, your mother has killed before too."

Helen glared at Nicky before dropping her head and studying her hands.

"Enough of this." He picked the gun up and leveled it at Jimmy's head. "First you, I'm so sick of you, your voice, your laugh, whenever I see you I think that driver should have just aimed better and done the world a favor."

"Please…." Helen was crying, both hands on Nicky's arm. "God, don't…."

He pulled the hammer back, as he felt Helen's desperate grip on his arm. "Let go of me, bitch."

She pushed herself in front of him. "Don't…"

"How sweet, she's begging." Vinnie grabbed Helen's arm and yanked her back into the chair.

"Don't hurt her!" Jimmy shouted across the room before dropping his voice to a whisper. "She has no clue what kind of a problem I am… don't worry about her… just do it."

"She won't let me, so I'll kill her. Fair enough?" He asked Helen.

Suddenly a heavy book slammed into the side of Nicky's head, sending him to the ground for a second time and his gun sliding into the kitchen.

Vinnie pointed his gun at Joanie, the source of the hurled literature, but Tommy had the gun before he could pull the trigger. The shot hit the window above Joanie, shattering glass over her and Kevin.

Sean had dropped onto Nicky and was pounding the Italian's face with both of his fists, a fury in him he'd never felt before.

Joanie was up and leaning over Sean's shoulder screaming. "Don't fuck with my family!"

Tommy was holding Vinnie's gun now against his forehead.

"You're going to hell, Tommy." Vinnie growled.

"Not before you." He fired point blank, blood splattering the carpet behind him and back at him as Vinnie's form crumpled to the floor.

Sean stopped the brutal beating and gasped for air until his heart had stopped racing.

"I think you got him, Seannie…" Joanie was grinning and she turned and hurried for Jimmy who all but picked her up.

Sean was staring at his bruised and bloody knuckles and took another shaky breath. "I - I killed him." He swallowed hard, his innocence gone faster than his fists had moved.

"Sean…" Helen's voice was firm despite the past few moments. "Seannie, if you hadn't-"

"It was self defense." Tommy interrupted, his voice more steady than Helen's. He picked up the phone and grabbed the phone book, specifically looking for Frankie's office. "Yes, Detective Frank Stein, please."

A long silence, everyone was watching Tommy.

"Frankie… Nicky and Vinnie are dead on my living room floor." Tommy was holding his breath as he listened to Frankie's questioning. "Self defense, Frankie. They had us at gun point for the past few hours." Another pause. "No, Frankie, I will tell you everything." He hung up and looked at each of his brothers. "He can't help us if it isn't 100% truth."

"How do you know Frankie Stein?" Helen whispered, still at the table and looking more pale than before.

"He's, uh, been around since Teach disappeared. Maybe before, I don't really remember. You know him?"

"He was new on the police squad when your father was killed. I knew him pretty well. He was too honest, I didn't think he'd last long." She looked back down at Sean who was staring at Nicky's face. "Get up."

Sean nodded and eased off of the body, sitting back at the table.

Helen reached across and grabbed his hand. "We're all okay."

Tommy looked around, at the blood on the carpet, the two bodies at his feet. When he was a kid it was everything in him not to throw himself off the roof for hurting his brother. Now, he'd killed too many to remember in the midst of all the chaos and he didn't know what to do. His hands started shaking and he closed his eyes tight.

Helen let go of Sean's hand and slowly inched around Nicky to Tommy. She took his arm and pulled him against her. "Whatever happens, Tommy, you did the right thing. All that matters is you saved your family."

"Ma, you… -you should rest." He choked out. He didn't know what else to say to her. He hadn't done the right thing since it had all began.

She gave him a pained smile, but shook her head. "I'm staying here with you all."

Tommy moved her back to the table and nodded. "Okay, but stay here."

Kevin slumped down next to her, dropping his head onto her shoulder and letting himself breathe. He too had some tears in his eyes as he tried to straighten it all out in his head. She fell asleep against him within moments and Kevin glanced up at Tommy. "Wanna move her?"

"No, she'll wake up and argue with us." Tommy put his jacket over her chest, hanging from her shoulders and he crossed his arms. "All we've put her through… it's a wonder she hasn't put a gun to her own head."

"Tommy?" Jimmy cut in. "Who does own Longdale now, is it Kate?"

Tommy leaned against the wall and chewed on his lip for a moment. "The deeds are identical. Dokey's name was on them, but he has no heir. Sal has no heir either. Dad and Huey's name's were on it, I don't know if it changes automatically, or if it has to be drawn up. If that's the case it's Ma and Kate." He paused and thought further. "Unless there's a will with a named heir, but I don't think Huey was stupid enough to put Kate's name on it."

"Even though Dad's dead, Ma would inherit part of it?" Jimmy dropped down next to Sean. Joanie resting on his shoulder.

"Yeah, his name would have been taken off with a processed death certificate. Since his name is still on everything Ma owns including banking and accounts, a certificate was issued, but never processed."

"How the hell do you know this stuff?" Kevin was staring at Tommy.

"He finished school." Helen mumbled, apparently not as asleep as they thought she was.

A hard knock on the door startled them all. "NYPD!"

"The truth." Tommy warned with a stern look.

Helen eased off of Kevin's shoulder, giving him a slight smile. "Which means, be quiet."

He smiled back, nerves not as shaky as usual.

Tommy opened the door and stepped back as Frankie and a dozen officers and detectives piled in. "Thanks, Frankie."

Frankie nodded. "No one could control the situation?"

Tommy shrugged. "Only if you count my Ma leaning in front of a loaded gun and begging Nicky not to shoot Jimmy."

"Situation could not be contained without loss of life." Frankie spoke to a young female officer beside him. "Tommy, tell me, how did Nicky get in here? You live in the city, kinda stupid to leave the door unlocked."

"It's a cheap hollow-wood door. We lock it, but not always… kind of pointless."

Frankie nodded. "Verbatim."

She wrote down word for word what Tommy's response was.

"Anyone hurt prior to when the situation escalated?"

"Yeah, but I wasn't here. I came in after Nicky and Vinnie had them all at gun point."

Frankie looked past Tommy to Jimmy. "You were?"

Jimmy nodded and Frankie walked in, stepping carefully over the bodies. "You've been stupid as long as I known you, t-shirts and all."

Jimmy grinned. "Yeah, well, my brothers and I aren't playing games anymore."

Frankie squeezed Helen's shoulder. "Doing okay?"

She shook her head, but didn't answer.

"Didn't know you investigated Dad's death, Frankie, all these past two years we've known you." Tommy leaned back against that center wall.

"You didn't need to." He looked back down at Jimmy. "The injuries sustained?"

Jimmy shrugged. "Well, Nicky threw Ma against the wall, smashed Seannie in the head with his gun. Vinnie tried to shoot Joanie, but he missed when Tommy hit his hand."

Frankie still had his hand on Helen's shoulder as he studied Jimmy. "Nicky Cotterro isn't the first to try and kill you, Jimmy."

"Yeah, but he tried to kill all of us, for some deeds Dokey and them own." Sean chimed in.

He nodded back to his assistant. "Extortion."

"All that?" She stared at him a moment.

"Yes, all that to simply say, extortion. Do you want to be replaced, Minzer?"

"No, Sir." She wrote the word down and stared at him again.

"No preservation of evidence is possible, photograph the bodies." He started to the other officers as they put up crime scene tape. "Write this down. Jimmy, exactly who shot who?"

"Tommy shot Vinnie." He looked over at Sean. "Seannie beat the piss out of Nicky."

Frankie covered his grin before the officers could see it. "Payback?"

"Didn't even cross my mind." Sean was looking up at Frankie. "I wouldn't of tried if that's what it was. It was instinct, I didn't have a weapon and he was close to getting his." He pointed to the gun still on the kitchen floor, about two feet from where Nicky could reach. "He would have killed all of us, he hinted to it."


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

"Nicky I understand, but Vinnie? Tommy, he's hardly dangerous." Frankie sat at the now empty dining room table. They'd sent the others to a nearby hotel and the detectives had vacated the apartment to be sure no evidence remained in the hallway and the stairwell.

Tommy sighed and ran his hand through his hair. "Listen, Frankie, I was upset, we were scared. They were taunting us, threatening us, Ma, Jimmy, Sean, Kevin… Joanie. They planned to kill us. Maybe Vinnie is usually harmless, but I wasn't going to take a chance."

Frankie sighed. "There could be a trial, reckless use of a weapon, I may be able to bring it down to a misdemeanor charge and I'll try for self-defense, but you need to be prepared for that."

"I know." Tommy agreed. "I have no regrets, my family is safe."

The older detective glanced around him at the mess the house was in. "They got all the evidence they can, but we'll need a week. But after that, I suggest you don't bring your Ma home until it's straightened up."

Tommy smirked at the curt tone beneath the suggestion. Frankie was right, Ma didn't deserve to come home to this a second time.

* * *

Helen's eyes opened to the completely darkened room. She fumbled for the light that was always on the nightstand by her bed. There was no nightstand. She eased herself upright and gasped at the pain that shot up her back and traveled quickly down her arms. The memories began flooding back as she realized where she was. She felt the bed beside her lightly and discovered one of her sons there. She pulled her hand back to keep from waking him and swung her feet slowly over the side of the bed to hit the floor. Her vision was clearing and she could see a curled up form between the beds and two sleeping in the other one. _Tommy_. She turned toward the window and saw a silhouetted form there, staring out into the city lights.

"Tommy?"

He moved his arm up to his face, but didn't turn or answer.

She didn't remember hearing him come in, he'd stayed behind to give a full report to Frankie and the other detectives. She stepped over the one between the beds, Kevin she decided, and made her way toward the window. She reached up to touch Tommy's arm and he pulled back.

"I've done some awful things, Ma. More than just tonight." The strain in his voice evidenced the pain it was causing him.

She reached further, and caught his arm tight between her fingers, pulling him until he faced her. She could see clearly the tears that glistened in the street light and streamed down his cheeks. "Oh, Tommy." She felt her own eyes stinging as she watched the tears drip silently down his cheeks. "You were protecting your family. Dokey, Huey… they're terrible people who've done awful things, not you."

He stared at his mother for a moment. She'd hinted at what she'd known about Huey before, but this was more honest than those times had ever been. "Ma, I just feel that I've let all of you down. I did things… for what? They almost killed you, Nicky was going to kill all of us. I've hurt people, I've killed people to try and protect our family and they still got to us."

"Ssh…" She squeezed his arm and pulled him into a tight hug. Five… she could see him as five again. "Almost killed us… almost is a wonderful word, Tommy, because it means it didn't happen, you saved us. _You did._ Not Jimmy, not Kevin or Sean. _You_ did. We're alive and safe because you did what you had to do."

Tommy's fingers tangled and tightened in the shirt fabric against her back and he pressed his face into her shoulder. She almost died in his arms twice now. Those moments were the worst he'd ever felt. "I love you, Ma. Very much."

Helen smiled as she pushed him back enough to be satisfied the tears were drying. "You are your father, and no matter what they tell you, that's a good thing."

He smiled back at her, even as Ian Riley's words echoed in his mind. _"Your father's animals."_ For the life of him, Tommy just couldn't picture his father the kind of monster that Dokey was. He looked at the beds and the feet poking out between them, his brothers and Joanie and than back to Helen. "It was worth it, to still have them… and you."

Helen sat in the small chair between the bed and the window and Tommy leaned against the sill, facing her and able to see her clearly in the light from the window.

"Did it hurt you, to know that Dad was involved in all of this?"

"No." It was too short an answer and she saw the curiosity flash across his face. She pulled a small blanket from the back of the chair down over her lap and leaned her head back, letting her eyes drift shut as she spoke. "We were so young when he got involved, his father let him in on some business. It was so quick and happened so flawlessly, it's all we ever knew. Sure when I'd see a body on the front page of the paper I'd think hard about it. We knew right from wrong and there was no doubt it was wrong, but it was the business."

"Jenny hated me for it. I guess that's why I asked."

Helen sighed and opened her eyes to look at him. "Jenny grew up differently than I did. I accepted it because my entire life centered on it, sometimes I was… involved." She leaned on the arm and dropped her voice a little bit. "She knew the moment you and Kevin got to the hospital the day Seannie was beat. She saw the blood I saw, she saw the pain and she knew, she told me she knew something terrible had happened."

"She's talking to me now, telling me she doesn't care about it. One of the old delivery guys has been threatening her and Mr. Riley-"

"Oh, Tommy don't." Helen interrupted.

Tommy shook his head. "I didn't, she's gone. He forced her to her own bed with him and she … he threatened to kill Mr. Riley if she didn't. She followed him home and … killed him."

Helen sat in silent shock. She'd spent a lot of time with Jenny and never knew her capable of that kind of anger, even when justified. "Is she alright?"

"She's awful, Ma. She's scared and lonely, and Mr. Riley is sick."

Helen pulled the blanket tighter, shivering as she did. "Take care of her. It's what you need to do, it's what you are supposed to do. That asshole she married was useless to her and never cared. Since you were young you've liked her and now you can have her."

Tommy moved to the thermostat as she was talking and raised the temperature. The clicking of the old coil heat register was strangely comforting. "Something about me always drives her away." He conceded as he returned to the windowsill. "She means everything to me, but she doesn't believe it. Or she doesn't want to."

Helen listened closely and felt his pain as she studied his nervous movements. She finally reached out and grabbed his hand.

He took it and slid to the floor, resting his head on her knee and for the first time in a long time felt completely safe.

* * *

Tommy woke to find he was the last one up. He had a pillow and a blanket and was lying across the floor near the window where he'd been sitting in the early hours of morning. He sat slowly and looked to the closest bed, where Helen was sitting, reading a paper.

She glanced up and smiled just as he was moving. "It's a hard floor."

"Something like that." He agreed with a yawn. He scooted onto the bed and sat next to Helen, leaning against the headboard. Joanie, Jimmy and Kevin were sprawled across the other bed with coffee and bagels.

"Where's Sean?"

"Mmm… that Nadine called him at 6:30. He was out the door to meet her for breakfast minutes later."

Tommy laughed and Helen laid the paper on her lap to reach for his coffee. He took it with a smile.

Jimmy shot a glance over his shoulder. "Tommy, if it's cold you can get fresh stuff in the office up a couple of doors."

Tommy shrugged. "It's fine, Jimmy, thanks." he paused and pressed the cup to his lips, inhaling the coffee. "Ma?"

"What?"

Tommy grinned at her New York response. She was getting her wit back. "Things are starting to look up."

She rested her head on his shoulder, pushing her glasses off her face and dropping them onto the paper. "I certainly hope so."

"No worries, Ma." Jimmy laughed, shoveling a bite of bagel into his mouth. Just then his phone went off. "Yeah?" He tossed it behind him toward Tommy. "It's Jenny, for you."

Tommy smiled and scooped it up. "Hey, Jenny…. No, no one knows it all just happened…. Late last night… okay, I'll meet you there." He jumped up and dropped the phone back in front of Jimmy. "I'll be back."

He wasn't quite out the door in time for Jimmy to yell back. "You need to get a phone!"

* * *

"I can't run the diner by myself and take care of him." Jenny was at the counter spot nearest the door, mug clenched tightly in her hands. "I didn't notice how bad he was getting until he lost the money. And when Sean was first in the hospital and we thought he was being smart about Sean's name? Tommy, he doesn't remember Sean or Jimmy, he thinks you're a kid and keeps rambling about owing your dad money. He's called me by my mother's name more than once, but not consistently."

Tommy put his arm around her, pulling her closer. "We'll figure it out. Is he a danger to himself?"

"No, I don't think it's that bad."

He sat quiet for a bit. "Frankie told you about last night?"

"Just bits and pieces when he was drinking his coffee this morning. Is it ever going to end Tommy? Who was at your place? Nicky?"

Tommy nodded. "Well, it ended last night when that son of a bitch threw my mother into the wall."

"Oh my God, Tommy - she's okay though?"

"Yeah, great. I think she's just relieved, you know? She knew a lot of stuff, things I didn't realize."

"Where are you staying? I tried the house phone all morning." She circled back behind the counter to refill their mugs.

"A motel up the road. The house is a mess, there's blood everywhere."

Jenny leaned on the counter and looked into his eyes. "Don't worry, when you're ready to bring her home I'll help you clean it up."

"Thanks Jenny, it means a lot."

* * *

The investigation was quick, a full week to the day. And, true to his word, Frankie Stein was able to declare the event indisputably self-defense. Acting on good faith, he also got Joey Ice Cream released in time to help with the cleanup.

Tommy had spent the better part of the morning ripping up the carpeting underneath the table. The blood stains from Nicky Cottero and Vinnie Culiari would not bleach clean no matter how hard he scrubbed. Finally, he took a utility knife to it, chunk by chunk.

Jenny made the innumerable trips out into the hall and to the far end where she could drop remnants down into the alley dumpsters. Not only bloody carpeting, but also the trashed dishes, broken frames and other damaged family possessions.

Kevin and Sean had been charged with picking up Joey following his release, after which the three would go and pick out a new carpet.

Jimmy was with Ma. He sat in the hotel room with her, absolutely quiet. Every now and than she'd look up from her book and ask "What?"

Finally he broke and answered the louder growing question. "You're the best mother in the world you know."

She stared at him, a confused look on her face. "Why?"

He cackled at her oh so familiar attitude. She always snapped when she was suspicious. "You're unconditional with everything! You always love us, forgive us for anything. You're just great."

A heavy roll of her piercing blue eyes led him to another fit of laughter.

"It's true."

"Let's say it is. What are you getting at?"

"Nothing!" His often feigned innocence was genuine this time.

She pushed the book off to the end of the bed and put her feet into the shoes that were on the floor. "Let's go get lunch."

"You and me?" He sat up and looked at her.

"What, afraid to be seen with your mother?"

He stood with a grin and held his arm up to her. "Well, let's go, Ma!"

Jenny and Tommy had the furniture stacked in the kitchen and the new padding down and waiting when the boys returned. They all hugged Joey and snacked him on the back as they brought in materials for laying the carpet.

It was 18 inches short on each side.

"One simple thing, Kevin! That's all I asked! Can it be returned?"

"No." Kevin whispered and flopped onto a chair that stuck out between the kitchen and dining room.

Tommy ran his hand along the wall. "Alright, we need help. Joey, Sean, repaint this wall, flat white. The cans are in Ma's room. Kevin, call the mattress company and find out about the delivery. Jenny, can you shop?"

"Shop, Tommy?" She stood with her arms crossed.

He pulled out a list. "These are the things they broke… I want to replace them for Ma."

Jenny took the list and cash and kissed him on the cheek. "You got it, Tommy."


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10 - Final**

"Mack! Do you know anything about carpets?" Tommy's voice echoed through the near empty union hall as he burst through the doors.

Johnny Mack was sitting at a small table toward the front with a couple of Dokey's survived degenerates. He looked up but stayed silent as Tommy approached.

Michael O'Kerffe stood and leaned close. "Donnelly, you're not wanted here."

Tommy shot him a look. "I'll leave that to Mack."

"You listen to me." O'Kerffe growled.

"That's enough, Michael-step out!" Mack never raised his voice.

Tommy focused back on Johnny. "We're trying to fix up our place for Ma, but Kevin messed up the carpet measurements.

Mack leaned back and pressed his pen under his chin. "I didn't know she'd been hurt until Detective Stein came poking around here a few days ago."

Tommy was getting frustrated and he leaned on the table. "You told me early in the year that you like us… so are you going to help? Dokey's not here to stop you anymore!"

Mack let a slow smile creep across his face. "Yeah, you did handle that well." He let his hand fall to his lap. "You still living in the same place?"

"Yeah… yeah we're still there."

"I haven't been there since your dad was alive." He stood and reached across to shake Tommy's hand. "I'll be there in an hour."

Tommy headed home, a certain relief felt as he journeyed the 30 minute walk from the union hall. By the time he had reached his destination, Jenny was back with three bags of carefully wrapped dishes and picture frames. They sprawled across Helen's new mattress with the salvaged photos and new frames.

"The broken glass scraped the pictures up pretty bad." Jenny whispered as she carefully wiped tiny shards of glass off the glossy surfaces. "As it is, she doesn't have many pictures of your dad."

Tommy nodded. "I don't think she expected she'd ever lose him. When he died she put a lot of money into buying a camera. Told us she has to preserve the important moments."

"She never uses it." Jenny said after spending a moment thinking about it.

"For a while she did, at birthdays or around Christmas and she has some from when Matthew Farrell was born.

Jenny nodded as she carefully pressed a picture of Bobby Donnelly holding an hour old Jimmy into a frame. "I guess when you only have a few it makes them that much more precious."

They were startled by a knock on the open bedroom door and Mack poked his head in. "You two are some kind of distracted. I yelled in and no one answered."

Tommy and Jenny exchanges smiles and Tommy stood. "Ma and Jimmy could be here anytime, we need to get started."

Mack crossed his arms and grinned. "No, we have all afternoon. I ran into them down town and gave them tickets for a movie in the city. It'll be 8 before they're back in town."

"Thanks, Mack." Tommy returned the smile as he followed Mack into the dining room.

Kevin was just coming back in behind them as they left Helen's room.

Mack slapped him on the back. "What'd you do wrong, Kevin?"

"I measured!" Kevin all but shouted.

Mack laughed. "Don't worry, I have an idea." He circled around the carpet in the empty room and squatted down on the far end. "Give me a razor, Kev."

Kevin slid it across the floor and slumped back into the chair to watch Mack slice a chunk off.

He held it up and tossed it to Joey before looking back at Kevin.. "Take that to Steven's Tactiles and tell him you want four remnants no smaller than 3x10 in coordinating brown.

Joey stared at the remnant in his hand. "But this is beige."

Mack glared at him. "Go back to jail, Joey."

Tommy was glaring too. "Did they beat you there, Joey? Coordinating doesn't mean the same."

"I knew that!" Joey protested as Kevin pushed him towards the door.

Tommy glanced toward the ladder in the corner. "Wait, where's Sean?"

Jenny shrugged. "I don't know, I came in with you."

Tommy grabbed the phone and dialed Sean's cell. The voicemail picked up right away. "Sean, get back here, we don't have time for this!"

"I'm right here."

Tommy peeked around the corner to see Sean standing in the doorway with the paint pan.

"They shut our water off on a count of Ma not paying any of the bills." He shrugged lightly before pouring a decidedly not-white color paint into the pan.

"The water's off?" Tommy wiped his mouth, his eyes almost wild. "I said white, Seannie."

"White's boring." Sean threw a fresh plastic cloth down and reached for the brush when Mack grabbed his arm.

"Ten hours ago you could paint, now you have to wait until the carpets laid, too much dust. Mack helped Sean bag the paint supplies up to keep it from drying out. "Tommy, call this number, tell them it'll be paid and give them my name."

* * *

Jimmy stepped carefully off the train onto the subway platform, Helen right behind him. Although Hell's Kitchen was a major part of NYC it was not Manhattan. Jimmy wasn't comfortable with the amount of people and the busy rush. He grabbed Helen's arm to keep her from being run into by _some asshole_. "How'd we let Mack talk us into this?"

"We didn't." Helen mumbled. "He said jump and you did."

He rolled his eyes as they ascended crowded steps to the street level. He examined the tickets and pointed up Broadway. "The movie theatre is on the corner past East 4th Street."

Helen glanced down at his leg and than back up at him. "Why'd we get off here? It's at least 12 blocks, Jimmy."

He smiled at her sudden concern. "Yeah, good exercise right?" He looped his arm through hers earning him an eye roll as they started off.

Two sodas and a large popcorn later they were settled into the sixth row as they waited for the feature to begin.

Helen had lapsed into a complete silence as she sat with the popcorn on her lap.

"You okay, Ma?"

"Hmm?" Helen watched him a moment before looking toward the ground, a shy-like and out of place smile on her face. "Yes, Jimmy. It's been a long time, but I finally feel like everything's going to be just fine."

"Yeah, so do I. Tommy handled things good." Jimmy gave his brothers credit for nothing.

Helen watched him closely. "Tell me about rehab, is it all outpatient?"

Jimmy nodded. "The lady in enrollment thinks I should do inpatient, but that's all medical and psychiatric, I don't need that."

She smiled softly as the lights began to dim. "You know, the last time I saw a movie your father and I skipped class to see it. Star Wars I think."

"You were too busy making out to care what movie it was." Jimmy whispered.

She smacked his arm. "You're terrible.

"Yeah, I know it." He eased down and leaned his shoulder against hers, falling asleep in five minutes.

* * *

Joey and Kevin hauled the dark brown pieces of carpet up threw them down outside the apartment door.

Mack stepped over it and unrolled one of the pieces, measuring out exactly when he needed. "Kevin, I laid the carpet glue and the tack strip along the back wall. This piece will lay along it, you and Joey set it, flush against the wall."

They nodded and carried the piece in.

"Sean?"

Sean poked his head out into the hallway. "Yeah Mack?"

"I can cut it out here. When they've laid that piece, go ahead and start painting the wall and trim there. We're running out of day."

Tommy finished cutting the end pieces to the measurements Mack gave him after the first was set. When all three edge pieces were tacked down and set along the three walls, Tommy and Mack carefully laid in the center beige piece, melting the seams together with a heat gun.

"Joey, help Sean pain, but lay enough drop cloth first. We should be able to finish it with enough time to move the furniture."

* * *

Helen watched the credits pour slowly down the large screen while moviegoers filed out in an endless stream. She nudged Jimmy, startling him.

"Over?" He mumbled, rubbing his eyes.

"You missed the whole thing."

He grinned and eased himself up off the cushioned theatre chair and dialed home. "You do know I'm killing time, right Ma?"

"I figured as much. Are they cleaning the house?"

"Yeah, they-Tommy! Hey, we're done in the city!"

* * *

Tommy hung the phone up and glanced around the room. The painter's tape had been pulled up, and the drop cloths thrown away. The carpet was sealed and set and an extra chunk of brown had been cut into the hallway near the entrance door to help bring the colors together. The top half of the room was painted an off white and the bottom half a medium brown with a fancy strip of molding running along where the two colors met.

Kevin and Joey were playing cards on the floor and Jenny had finished tacking up pictures on the left wall in a block setting. They were all pictures of the boys as babies, mostly from the hospital.

Sean and Mack were polishing off the second of two extra large mushroom and pepper pizzas.

"They'll be back within the hour." Tommy announced finally.

Mack reached into the box to gather bits of cheese and mushroom and licked it off his finger before closing the box and stacking it on the too-full garbage. "Alright, we get the hutch moved in first, than that dresser thing."

After the hutch was moved to center on the far wall, Jenny set some of the broken statues on top. "She won't replace these?"

Tommy shook his head. "There's no way. They were the first things she and dad bought after they got married."

Jenny nodded and placed two brand new prayer candles in between.

* * *

Jimmy was quiet the entire tip back home as he contemplated everything that had happened. It was Helen's turn to doze off and she looked peaceful to him. She was alive and doing very well. He patted her knee to wake her. "Almost home, Ma."

She nodded, but didn't move to sit or open her eyes.

"Tired, huh?"

"You wore me out today, Jimmy."

"Don't be too worn out, the house deserves looking at."

"Because it's clean?" She opened one eye to stare at him.

"Yeah, sorta."

"Only sorta clean?"

He laughed as the subway came to a stop, four blocks from home.

* * *

Nadine and Joanie hurried into the apartment, Joanie holding a pretty vase with pink roses.

"Oh, wow guys!" Nadine breathed as they stepped in. "This looks great!"

Joanie set the flowers and a twelve pack of Guinness down on the counter and made a face. "I think you were lying to me, Joey."

Tommy laughed and shook his head. "For once he wasn't."

"Your Ma actually drinks this stuff?"

"It's an Irish thing." Tommy slid the case into the fridge and smiled over at Jenny. "Can you stay?"

"Would I dare leave? And miss seeing your Ma take _this_ in? Yes, I can stay."

Mack put the last of the new glasses in the upper cabinets while Sean laid the clean lace tablecloth down.

Nadine took the flowers from the counter and set them in the center of the table.

* * *

Jimmy was limping more as they made it to their building, and he slumped down onto the bottom step of the stoop.

"Just rest." She sat down next to him and took his hand. "I had a wonderful day."

"I'm glad to hear you say that, Ma. I'm ready for bed."

She laughed. "Yeah, so am I."

He took a breath and stretched his leg out. "Let's go home." He kissed her cheek and let her help him back up and they slowly made their way up the stairs. They pushed through the hall, and both stopped in surprise.

"Wow guys!" Jimmy managed as he took Helen's coat and purse. "Awesome!"

Mack and Jenny were at the table, the boys were near the window, Nadine was standing in the kitchen. Joanie had already found Jimmy's arms and all were now waiting for her to say something.

Nothing. Not a word passed her lips. She closed her eyes and smiled slightly.

That was plenty for Kevin who hurried over to hug her. "You like it?"

"Very, very much, Kevin." She sat down at the table and Mack slid an open beer to her. "You were involved too?"

"Only after some mis-measurements. Tommy and Jenny orchestrated the plot."

She smiled over at them, happy to see them together again. Well, he did have his hands on her shoulders.

"Everything's going to be good from now on, Ma." Tommy spoke softly.

Helen spotted Joey in the corner, jittery as usual, but keeping to himself. "About time they let you out."

Joey tried to smile, but felt hot tears instead. He crossed the room nearly falling into her as he hugged her. "I'm really glad you're okay, Mrs. Donnelly."

She pushed him back. "I'm really glad you're home, Joey."

* * *

Helen relaxed into the new bed, warm thick blankets tight around her. She felt safe and happy. Mack and Joey had left an hour ago, but everyone else was still playing cards at the table. She had just started to fall asleep when the door creaked open.

"Ma?"

"Kevin?"

"Yeah." Not really an answer.

She reached to switch the light on. "What is it?"

"I though you could use some… company… tonight." He paused, feeling like an idiot in his mother's room.

"With everything that's happened, company would be comforting."

He smiled and shut the door to block the continuing noise from the ongoing game.

"Did you lose?" She asked as he crawled in beside her.

"Actually, Ma… I won. Jimmy owes me a six pack, Jenny's buying me lunch, and Seannie's lending me his new car."

Helen shook her head. "You finally win a hand an you get crap for a jackpot?"

"Bragging rights."

"I'll show you bragging rights." She switched the light off and eased back against her pillow. I have four amazing sons, they have some wonderful girlfriends, Joey's back, a _new_ home… I couldn't be happier."

He kissed her cheek. "I love you, Ma."

"I love you too, Kev."

By morning, the Donnelly boys were all sprawled about Ma's room, sound asleep. The girlfriends were in the other bedrooms and Joey was back across the foot of Ma's bed. The Irish might not have taken over the neighborhood, but they were well on their way to becoming the men their father didn't live long enough to see, and the sons who would kill for their mother.

* * *

"Joey… you swear, _under oath_, that this… _story_… this is the truth?" The latest lawyer slammed the book down against the table startling the jury and judge.

"The whole truth."

"Than how'd you end up back in jail?"

"Oh… _that_."

Fin.


End file.
